


Unbreakable

by xHookedonKillianx



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-11
Updated: 2016-12-30
Packaged: 2018-06-07 17:57:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 35
Words: 206,669
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6818248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xHookedonKillianx/pseuds/xHookedonKillianx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What if Hook was able to go with Emma and Henry when they left to escape Pan’s curse? With no memory of each other or Storybrooke, Emma and Killian meet in New York as complete strangers, both with broken pasts, and both with clean slates for their future.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

_> >>>>>>>>>>>>>> _

_Good._

When Hook told Emma that he was going to think of her every day, she smiled at him and said good. His heart soars and it’s the first time since Neverland that he thinks his feelings aren’t one sided. But as quickly as that happiness fills him, heart ache replaces it.

He’s never going to see her again.

He stands there and watches as she speaks to Regina. He can’t take his eyes away from her. In a matter of minutes, she will be gone from his life. Words can’t describe the heart break he’s feeling. It’s unlike anything he has ever felt. Milah was taken from him, she is gone from the world, it was terrible, and tragic, but it almost seems easier. Because what’s happening with Emma seems far worst. Emma, the woman who has changed him in a way that he never thought possible, will still exist, and while he’ll remember her, she will have no memory of him.

“Well, your past won’t. But your future will,” Regina explains.

Her future.

Regina’s giving her a clean slate to have the future she’s always wanted. A future with her son. His eyes move over to Bae and he sees the man trying not to break down. For the second time, he lost his father, and now, he is about to lose his son, too.

A thought comes to Hook’s mind, and even though it pains him, he has to try. He failed Bae in the past and he doesn’t intend to do it again.

“What if…” his voice interrupts her. “What if someone wasn’t brought here by you and the curse? Could they escape it?”

Regina blinks. “I don’t… it might be possible.”

He looks back at the man that he once hoped to raise as his own. “Bae, you could be with your family.”

He promised him that he would back off, that he would give him his chance for Henry’s sake, and that is exactly what he’s going to do. He’s going to give her the happy ending she always wanted, even if he wasn’t with him like he hoped.

Emma’s jaw drops and while everyone looks back at Bae, he can feel her eyes on him.

Bae’s face lights up as he moves forward.

“Regina is it possible?”

She lets out a sigh. “You may not have come over with the curse, but your father did, and because you two share a blood connection with Pan, I doubt you’ll be able to out run it.”

Hook’s heart breaks at her words while Bae deflates.

“It was a nice thought,” Snow mumbles to him but he ignores her.

_Nice thoughts don’t help the situation._

“You should go,” Bae calls out to him.

Hook snaps his head up to look at him in shock. Bae knows what Emma means to him, he knows his feelings toward her… and that’s when he realizes it. Just like he was, Bae was trying to give her a happy ending, whether it meant it was with him or not. He opens his mouth to debate that it won’t work when Bae cuts him off.

“You have no blood connection here. Regina didn’t bring you with the curse, you’ve crossed the line already without losing your memories… you’ll be able to out run it.”

The smoke starts to get closer as they all stand there and wait for Hook’s answer.

“He’s right,” Regina whispers. “It would work. But Hook, you would be giving up everything. You’re past… you won’t remember anything from the Enchanted Forest.”

His heart pounds in his chest. Part of him wants to run right across the line and never look back, but there’s also a part of him that is terrified that Emma won’t want him.

“You would do that?” her voice is so soft; he almost doesn’t hear here.

When he finally looks up at her, he sees a sparkle of hope in her eyes.

Taking a step forward, he answers, “Aye.”

Of course he will. He would give up anything just to be with her, to follow her, he would go to the ends of the earth if it meant he could be by her side, no matter what he is to her.

She sucks in a breath and when she nods, his heart explodes with joy. Regina looks up in the sky at the smoke.

“There isn’t much time. The curse will be here any minute.”

Henry gives her one last hug and she kisses him on the forehead. David walks up to Hook with tears in his eyes.

“Look after them.”

“With my life,” he promises.

David nods and moves back to his daughter while Hook walks over to Regina.

“My brother and Milah…”

Regina nods. “I know.”

“What will happen to me?”

She sniffles and brushes her fingers through Henry’s hair. “I’ll give you memories, just like I’m giving Emma and Henry.”

His chest tightens and he pleads with her.

“Don’t make us a fake family, Regina.” She looks up at him with wide eyes. “Give me a way to be there, but don’t force it.”

Regina gives a slight nod and flicks her wrist. He looks down to see that his leathers have been replaced with modern clothes and instead of his hook, there’s a prosthetic hand.

The curse is rapidly surging towards them as Snow White approaches a tearful Emma with a smile and plants a kiss on her forehead. After she they say one finally good, Emma turns to Hook and Henry and gives a slight nod before the three of them walk to her car and get in.

Just as they cross the line, Emma reaches out to take his hand in her own. His eyes stare at their hands and he can’t hold it back anymore.

“I love you, Emma,” he confesses.

He’s not sure why he tells her. Maybe because he wants her to know before they start whatever new life lays ahead of them.

She blinks as a tear runs down her face.

A small smile ghosts across her lips and she whispers, “I know.”

* * *

_Killian is five years old when his mother dies of cancer. He doesn’t remember her much, but he remembers how Liam cries and his father changes._

_He’s eight when he wakes to find his father has abandoned them. They run out of food to eat after a week and the school calls social services when they find out._

_He’s ten when they try to separate him and Liam for the first time. Killian trashes the office while Liam bites the social workers arm. They never try to separate them again._

_He’s thirteen when Liam wins his emancipation case and he takes them out of the system forever._

_He’s fifteen when Liam joins the Navy, they live on the base and he thinks his brother is hero._

_He’s sixteen when he finally graduates and officially becomes an officer in the Queen’s Royal Navy. His brother sits in the stands and watches with pride._

_He’s nineteen when he and Liam finally get stationed on the same base and everyone talks about the Brother’s Jones and what an unstoppable force they are._

_He’s twenty-one when the accident happens. They are doing routine training when a cousin of the Duke decides to smoke a fag in the oil room of the ship. He forgets to put it out fully and there is an explosion. Liam dies in his arms on the deck from his injuries. The man is never punished. Six months later, he’s dishonorably discharged for drunken disorderly._

_He’s twenty-three when he meets Milah at a pub. She makes him feel happy for the first time since his brother died. They spend their nights drinking and starting fights with anyone who dares to step to them. Milah gets off on the danger and he gets off on her._

_He’s twenty-five when he and Milah leave the restaurant. They are celebrating their two-year anniversary and on their way to pub for some drinks. Milah insists on driving since he has had too much rum. They are two blocks away from the pub when she gasps and faints while driving. He yells out to her and tries to grab the wheel but he’s too late. He wakes up in the hospital three days later. They tell him he’s lost his hand and Milah had a heart attack and didn’t survive the crash._

_He's twenty-seven when he gets the tattoo. He hopes that it will numb the pain of losing her… it doesn’t. It’s only a reminder._

_He’s thirty when he finally decides to leave London because he can’t stand to live in the same place that holds so many nightmares and moves to New York. He finds an apartment that he can afford and works at the local pub to make a living._

_One month later, he meets Emma Swan._

 


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double line breaks means change in POV

** Chapter Two **

Killian sighs as walks into his apartment building. He’s exhausted and wants nothing more than to go to sleep. He worked that late shift the night before and the early shift that morning all so Barry could spend his anniversary with his girlfriend.

He didn’t mind, and it’s not like he couldn’t use the money, but he had to turn down some very tempting offers from a female customer from the night before because he knew he had to be in work early.

It also meant he couldn’t drink, which made everything seem dull.

His life is an endless loop of the same things. He wakes in the morning, works, drinks until he’s numb, sometimes goes home with a girl from the pub, then sneaks out when she falls asleep.

Sure, sometimes it caused trouble, but he isn’t looking for anything and he always makes that known at the start. It’s not his fault if they can’t handle it.

Things are easier that way.

_Look out for yourself and you’ll never get hurt._

And gods know that he has been hurt in the past.

The elevator dings at his floor and he steps off. He makes his way down the hall but stops short when he sees a young lad sitting on the ground with his back leaning against the apartment door next to his own.

Killian looks up and down the hallway but they are the only people there.

“You okay there, lad?”

The boy looks up at him as he approaches and takes the earbuds out of his ears.

“I’m sorry, did you say something?”

“You waiting for someone?” Killian asks as he motions to the door.

He nods. “My mom. I forgot my keys. She should be home in about an hour or so.”

The boy looks back down at his smart phone and Killian closes his eyes. All he wants to do is sleep but he knows he can’t just let the lad sit in the hallway by himself.

He wipes his mouth and motions with his wooden hand to his own door. “Well, you can wait in my flat if you’d like, so you don’t have to sit out here in the hall.”

“Sure,” the boy says without looking up from his phone. He moves his thumbs around before he puts it in his pocket and stands. “Thanks. I’m Henry.”

The boy holds his hand out for a handshake. He smiles at the boy’s manners and reaches out to shake his hand.

_Good form._

“Killian Jones. Nice to meet you, lad.”

When they enter his apartment, he realizes that Henry is the first person he ever had in his new place. Since he moved in, if he decided to bed a woman, he always went to her flat. It made for an easier get away.

“Your place is really cool,” Henry says as he walks in and puts his book bag on the counter in his kitchen.

Killian shrugs. “It’s a flat.”

Henry smiles. “You sound like my mom. She always brushes things like that off.”

His lips press together. This place is just a flat to him, he hasn’t had a home since he was twenty-five years old.

“Make yourself at home,” he mumbles.

He learns from the boy that he and his mother moved in around the same time he did. He tries to think back if he ever saw them before, but he can barely remember the day he moved in.

He blames the rum he drank the night before.

They talk for a while and he finds himself enjoying the boys company. Henry is interesting and seems much wiser than his actual years. The boy tells him about his new school and how he finally has some friends, which is making the move a lot easier.

To be honest, he’s surprised at how much the boy talks, but he doesn’t mind. It’s a nice distraction.

“Sorry,” Henry says with a chuckle. “I don’t usually get to talk to other guys, only my mom, and sometimes I can get a little carried away.”

He hands Henry a soda and shakes his head. “No need to apologize, lad. I’m glad for the company.”

Henry takes the soda before he turns toward the living room.

“Is that an X-box?”

“Aye.”

Henry looks back at him with wide eyes. “You can play?”

That makes him smirk. It’s not the first time people thought he couldn’t do things because of his disability and he always loved proving them wrong.

“Of course,” he scoffs and holds up his right hand to wiggle his fingers. “Good exercise for the digits.”

Henry giggles and Killian watches as the boy eyes the system. He walks out over to him and motions to the TV.

“Want to play some Black Ops?”

The boy shuffles his feet. “Mom doesn’t let me play that game. She says it’s too violent.”

Smiling, he pokes him in the chest with his prosthetic.

“Aye, but I’m sure you’ve played before.”

Henry’s ears go pink. “Promise not to tell my mom?”

“On my honor.”

They are twenty minutes into their game when the boys phone rings. Killian continues playing as the boy speaks to his mother. When he puts his phone down, he turns to him with wide eyes.

“She’s coming to get me.”

Seconds later, there is a knock on his door.

“Uh,” he looks back at the TV. “I’ll get the door. You turn the game off, aye?”

Henry nods while Killian hands him the controller and walks out of the living room. When he opens the door, his mouth drops open. He has seen good looking women, beautiful women, before. He works in a pub that’s usually filled with them, but there is nothing that could have prepared him for the beauty that is Henry’s mother, or the feeling of absolute peace when his eyes connect with hers.

His eyes go wide and he feels his heart start to race. Her hands move to her back pockets and her eyebrows go up. Killian is only half aware that he hasn’t spoken yet.

“Killian, this is my mom,” Henry says as he walks up. “Mom, this is Killian Jones.”

“Uh…” He finally realizes that he’s staring and clears his throat as he shakes his head quickly to break himself out of his trance. “Yeah, um,” he chuckles and holds his hand out to her. “Pleasure.”

The woman blinks and looks down at his hand like she’s never seen one before. Her green eyes snap back up to his before she smiles and he almost chokes at how gorgeous it is.

“Right, yes,” she offers her hand. “Hello.”

They stand there in silence with their hands still together just staring until Henry clears his throat.

“Henry!” she cries out and finally pulls her hand away.

Her cheeks turn pink and he swears he’s never seen anything more wonderful.

“Thanks for letting me stay here, Killian.”

He clears his throat and nods. “Anytime, lad.”

The blonde puts her arm around the boy’s shoulder and looks back at him.

“Yes, thank you,” she stutters and motions with her head to Henry. “I might have to start pinning his keys to his clothes so that he doesn’t forget them.”

_Dear Gods, please don’t._

Henry rolls his eyes and says goodbye before he walks out into the hall.

“It was no problem, love. Henry’s a fine lad.”

She smiles again and his heart flutters. There is something about this woman that calls to him, but he can’t put his finger on it.

Her brows go together. “Have we met before?”

With a chuckle, he leans against the door frame. “I’m pretty sure I’d remember meeting you, lass.”

She blushes and he wonders how far down her blush goes. Her gaze moves to her feet before she looks back up at him.

“Yes, well, um, thank you,” she says before she turns to walk back to her door.

He smiles. “It seems we find ourselves in a little bit of a dilemma.”

Her eyes move to the hall before they come back to him. “Um, what dilemma would that be?”

“Well,” he crosses his arms over his chest. “The way I see it, I just did you a service and an exchange of goods should be done.”

She presses her lips together and raises her eyebrow. “Goods?”

He shrugs. “Payment.”

The woman blinks before she shakes her head.

“Yes, right, of course. Um,” she reaches into her back pocket. “How much—”

“Name.”

She looks up at him in confusion. “Wh… what?”

With a smirk, he explains, “I didn’t get your name, love. I figured it’s the least you could do.”

Her tongue pokes out before she bites her lip to hide her smile.

“Emma,” she rolls her eyes with a smile when he raises his eyebrows. “Swan. Emma Swan.”

“Swan,” he starts, testing her name on his lips as he stands up fully. “Beautiful name for a beautiful woman.”

She rolls her eyes again. “Do those kind of lines work for you?”

He chuckles and shakes his head. “I speak only the truth.”

“Okay, well, thanks again. Have a nice night, Killian.”

He tries to ignore the way his skin prickles at the sound of his name on her lips.

“You, too, Swan.”

He waits until she disappears into her apartment to close the door and for the first time in five years, he finds himself with a genuine smile on his face.

* * *

* * *

_ Tuesday _

Emma lets out a sigh as she steps off the elevator. She’s home earlier than she expected to be and she knows Henry is still at his after school program. As she walks down the hall, she thinks about what she could make them for dinner when she sees Killian.

His back is to her as he locks his apartment door and she gets a second to appreciate his backside. When the door opened the night before, she was completely unprepared for the sight that was Killian Jones. He was tall, dark and all kinds of handsome in his light blue jeans and dark gray knit sweater. He had just the right amount of scruff, his eyes were the bluest she has ever seen and the fact that he liked to wear black eyeliner intrigued her to no end.

Though she’ll never admit it, she spent the better part of the night trying to get his smile out of her head.

She walks up to her door just as he turns around and it seems like the entire hall gets brighter when he smiles at her. He’s wearing jeans with a sky blue buttoned down shirt and a tan winter’s coat.

“Swan, fancy seeing you here.”

“Hi,” she whispers out because she honestly can’t think of anything else to say in that moment.

“How was your day?”

Adjusting the strap on her shoulder, she gives a shrug. “Um, nothing too exciting, work as usual. How was yours?”

He puts his index finger through his keyring and motions down the hall.  “On my way to work, I’m afraid.” When her brow furrows, he explains. “I’m a bartender.”

“It suits you.” When his eyebrow goes up, she bites her lip and looks down at her feet before she mumbles, “Well, I hope you have a nice night at work.”

A small smile creases his cheek. “Thank you, Swan.”

She turns back to her door and listens as he walks down the hall. The elevator dings just as she opens unlocks her apartment and she can’t help but look down the hall at him. Their gaze connects before he disappears onto the elevator.

The butterflies in her stomach make her heart race.

_ Wednesday _

Emma walks into the apartment that night to find a note from Henry on the fridge.

_I’m next door at Killian’s._

Her face scrunches together in confusion. Her son seems to have grown fond of their new neighbor and he only met him once. She remembers how the night before he asked if he could go see if Killian was home, only to be disappointed when she told him she saw him leave for work.

It wasn’t the first time Henry has tried to befriend an older male, with his father not in the picture, he lacked a strong male role model, but she doesn’t want her child to force his presence on their neighbor.

Putting her bag on the counter, she turns to walk back into the hall and knocks on her neighbor’s door. After a few seconds, the door opens and she smiles at the way Killian’s face lights up when he sees it’s her. This time he’s wearing gray sweat pants and a black Henley that fits him perfectly across his toned chest and arms.

“Swan.”

“Hey, Killian. Is Henry here?”

He motions with his head and opens the door to invite her in. When she walks past him, she gets a scent of his cologne and her mouth waters.

She looks around his apartment as he leads her into the living room. She’s surprised to find it so clean and tidy, but frowns at how bare it looks. There are no pictures, no personal affects, just the necessary needs one furniture and light fixtures.

It reminds her stolen nights in abandoned houses and cheap hotel rooms.

Shaking her head to rid herself of unpleasant memories, she walks into his living room to find her son sitting on Killian’s couch with cards spread out on the coffee table.

“Hey, kid.”

Henry looks up at her and smiles. “Hey, mom.”

Killian walks up to stand next to her as she crosses her arms, “I just wanted to make sure everything was okay.”

Henry rolls his eyes and looks back at the cards on the table. “Everything is fine.”

She shakes her head. “Henry, what have I told you about bothering people? Maybe Killian has things to do?”

“I have nothing to do,” Killian says with a shrug.  “And your boy isn’t a bother. No need to fret, love.”

She puts her hands in the back of her pockets. “Still…”

“Honestly,” he starts again, cutting her off. “It beats sitting in here by myself.”

He gives her a smile and her skin starts to prickle.

“See,” Henry starts. “I told you everything is fine.”

Sighing, she mumbles, “If you’re sure.”

He throws her another earth-shattering smile and nods. “Positive.”

“Okay, but Henry,” the boy looks up at her. “Make sure you’re home by eight.”

Henry nods and turns back to his cards. Turning to Killian, she gives him a smile in thanks and heads back toward the front door.

“Feel free to stay,” she looks to see that Killian has followed her. “If you want.”

“Thanks, but I have some things I have to do,” she says with a shake of her head.

His face drops slightly before he suggests, “Perhaps next time, then. You’re more than welcome.”

Her face goes hard before she grabs his elbow and yanks him to the door. “If this is some kind of ‘get in my pants’ thing, you’re in for a world of trouble.”

Killian blinks. “Excuse me?”

“Using my son to get closer to me? That’s low and disgusting and…”

His jaw locks and his eyes turn hard. “I would never do that.”

“Then—”

“I happen to enjoy hanging out with your boy, Swan. He’s a good lad. But it’s nice to know what you think of me after three encounters,” he growls. Her mouth falls and she takes a step back. She regrets the words as soon as she sees the look on his face, but when she tries to apologize, he cuts her off again. “I’ll make sure he’s home by eight.”

He turns and stalks back into the living room without so much as a parting glance. She leaves with her shoulders slumped and a feeling in the pit of her stomach she can’t quite explain.

_ Thursday _

Her stomach flips when she hears Henry greet Killian as he walks out into the hall the next morning. She hasn’t seen him since the night before and she still feels like a complete asshole.

“Good morning, lad. Off to school I take it.”

“Yeah, it sucks.”

When she walks out she sees Killian standing there in running pants, a white t-shirt and a zip up hoodie. He has earbuds wrapped around his neck and a bottle of water under his arm. His eyes are fresh of eyeliner and it almost makes him look younger.

He chuckles and lifts his prosthetic to tap him on the chest. “Aye. But it’s better than working, remember that.”

Henry nods and she doesn’t miss the fact that Killian refuses to look at her.

“Hey, kid. Why don’t you go get the elevator? I want to talk to Killian for a second.”

 She sees his body tense before he gives a quick smile to Henry. Her son waves and walks down the hall.

“What can I do for you, Swan?”

She sighs. “I’m an asshole.” When he finally looks at her, it’s with his eyebrows raised. “I’m sorry for what I said last night. It’s just… it wouldn’t be the first time a guy has tried, and the person who gets hurt in the long run is Henry.”

“Ah,” he says with a nod as he leans back against the wall.

“When you asked me to stay, I just… that’s what I thought it was.”

His nose twitches before he shrugs his shoulders. “Swan, I meant what I said last night. I like spending time with your boy. I don’t mind if he comes over after school, and it’s not because I’m trying to ‘get in your pants’ as you so beautifully put it.” She groans and he chuckles. “I was just letting you know that the offer stands for you, as well. Because I would like to get to know you better.

Shuffling her feet, she murmurs, “I don’t date.”

He snorts. “Full of yourself, aren’t you?” She throws him a pointed look and he laughs. “It’s not a bad thing, love. The way you look, you should be full of yourself.”

She crosses her arms and nods with a smile. “You mean like you?”

He stands up fully and smirks with a wave of his hand. “Well, I am devilishly handsome.” She barks out a laugh at that and he continues. “But, to ease your pretty little mind, I don’t date either.”

Her head slightly tilts as she eyes him. “So… friends?”

Her heart starts to race as he stares at her before his lips curve into a smile.

“Aye, friends.”

They begin to walk down the hall together toward the elevator but he stops her before they approach Henry.

“I’m serious, Emma. I would like to get to know you better.”

Pushing a piece of hair behind her ear, she answers, “I’d like that, too.”

“Good.”

When she gets home that night, she finds Killian in her living room playing video games with Henry. He’s wearing khakis and a white cotton long sleeved shirt. She is starting to wonder if he owns any baggy clothes. They order food and eat dinner together. When she apologizes about the fast food he just shrugs and tells her he doesn’t mind, he isn’t much of a cook. With a smile, she promises him a home cooked meal next time.

He stays after Henry goes to sleep and they talk about nothing in particular and exchange banter back and forth. Killian Jones is a shameless flirt and she knows if she doesn’t get her wits about her when he is around, things will end badly. But he’s making her feel a way she hasn’t felt in a long time and even though it scares her, she’s also excited.

And when he leaves, she falls asleep with a smile on her face.


	3. Chapter Three

** Chapter Three **

“Emma,” she looks up as her boss walks into the room. “There’s a new case.” He hands her the folder and leans against her desk with his arms crossed. “Father of three, arrested two months ago for failure to pay child support, didn’t show up at his court hearing last week. He’s been spotted at a bar not far from here.”

Her eyes move over the paperwork as she asks, “This bar is actually right around the corner from my place.”

“Good.” He stands. “Can you try and get him tonight?”

“Uh, yeah. Just let me get home and get changed… I’ll call you when I have him.”

Later that night, she walks into the crowded bar and looks around. She doesn’t see her mark but that doesn’t mean he won’t show. Her hands brush over her black dress as she walks forward. She usually lets the manager know what she’s up to incase they try to intervene, also, sometimes it’s good to have an extra pair of eyes.

Moving to the end of the bar, she waves to the bartender to get her attention. The bleached blonde walks up her with a smile.

“Hey sweetheart, what can I get you?”

“I’m actually looking to speak to your manager,” She says over the sound of the crowd.

The girl’s brows go together. “Um, sure, can you hold on a second?”

Emma nods as the girl walks off. Keeping watch on the crowd, she taps her fingers on the bar as she waits, rolling her eyes every time she catches some guy gawking at her.

“How can I help—” She turns around at the voice and her mouth falls open. Killian stands before her, his eyes widened in shock before his gazes rakes up and down her body, making her skin heat up. “Bloody hell, love. You look fantastic.”

He’s wearing jeans, and a tight gray, long sleeved shirt that stretches across his biceps, his hair is a wonderful mess, and he’s wearing his signature black eyeliner.

_Fuck me._

“Killian? You work here?”

He crosses his arms and smirks. “That I do, and right now, I’m very glad for it.”

She blushes and finds herself squirming under his gaze.

“What can I do to—” She raises her eyebrows and he coughs as he shakes his head. “—for you, love.”

Leaning closer so that he can hear her better, not so she can smell his cologne, she says, “Well, actually, I’m here for my job. Do you have somewhere we can talk?”

His eyebrow quirks and he gives a short nod before motioning to a door. She smiles as he holds it open for her and she walks into what looks like an office.

“You know, if you wanted to get me alone, you could have just come by my flat.”

She chuckles and rolls her eyes. “Seriously, do those lines work for you?”

“Who says it’s a line?” he laughs as he leans back against a desk.

When he wiggles his eyebrows, her cheeks tint.

“Um, ergh, I’m here for work,” she starts.

“In a dress like that, I just have to know what you do and are they hiring?”

With a sigh, she lifts her clutch to take the picture out.

“I’m a bail bonds person—” she stops when he holds up his hand.

“Bail bonds person?” He stutters out and she nods. “ _Please_ tell me you own a pair of handcuffs.”

She gives him a blank stare and he licks his bottom lip. She’s finding it hard not to smile, but she manages it and hands him the photo.

“Have you seen this guy?”

He looks down at the photo and nods before he handing it back to her. “Aye. He comes in here all the time. Probably will be in tonight.”

“He skipped his court hearing last week and needs to be brought in.”

She watches as his brow furrows while he crosses his arms over his chest, “You going to do it alone?”

“I can take care of myself,” she clips.

He reaches up to scratch his ear. “Of that, I have no doubt, love. But shouldn’t you have some sort of back up?”

She brushes her hair behind her shoulder. “I’ll be fine. I usually let management know so that they don’t get involved and so that they can be an extra set of eyes for me.”

He huffs and nods before he stands up. “Then I suggest you sitting at the main bar. I’ll be managing it and will be able to keep a weather eye.”

Amusement flashes across her face, “Sure that’s the only thing you’ll have a weather eye on?”

“Oh, I’ll most certainly be looking at you in that dress,” he says with no shame.

“Do you flirt with every girl you don’t know?”

“Now, you wound me, Swan. I’d say me and you have become great friends,” he gasps as his hand goes to his chest.

She laughs. “I met you a week ago.”

He shrugs. “That matters not.”

“I better get out there.” When he doesn’t move, she squints her eyes at him. “Are you waiting for me to go first so you can check out my ass?”

His tongue pokes out to wet his bottom lip and he smirks, “And you say we’re not great friends.”

She laughs out loud and walks out of the office. There is something different about Killian, what that is she isn’t sure. Normally, when men flirt, she gets annoyed, put off, but with him, it almost seems normal. Like they’ve done it before and it’s just natural for them.

She sits at the bar and orders a mixed drink. She usually orders a beer or rum, but she has a part to play. To any onlooker, it would seem she was just a regular woman out for a drink, but her eyes are all over the room. Her mark still hasn’t shown his face yet, but she isn’t worried. According to his file, young, attractive blondes are his type.

As the night goes on, she can’t help but notice the number of females that flock to the main bar and she knows Killian is the reason.

Just like she suspected, Killian is a shameless flirt. Every female he takes an order from is rewarded with a smirk and a wink. More often than not, she has to sit there and listen as girl’s gush over him, and every time, she clenches her fists in her lap and ignores the immense feeling of jealousy that courses through her.

But her anger always seems to slip away when he stands in front of her to refill her drink because the looks he gives her, she can almost swear, are completely different. He always pours the drink slower so that he can talk to her more and instead of his smirk and wink, she’s rewarded with a smile.

“Maybe he won’t show, love,” he says as he pours her third drink.

She shakes her head. “He’ll show. He’s a creature of habit.”

He throws his towel over his shoulder and leans his elbows onto the bar. “Do you do this often?”

Taking a sip of her drink, she shrugs. “Not really. It’s more of tailing and just grabbing them when they least expect it, but apparently he’s been able to spot everyone that has tried to grab him and get away.”

He smirks. “So they figure send a beautiful woman like you on him and he won’t be able to resist.”

She winks and clicks her tongue at him. They are both chuckling when a man with dirty blonde hair sits down next to her.

“Hey, gorgeous. Can I buy you a drink?”

She lifts her glass. “I have a drink. Thank you, though.”

Dirty blonde throws a flirty smile her way. “How about another?”

She chuckles and her eyes move up to Killian. She’s surprised when she sees his arms crossed, his jaw locked, and that he is glaring at the man next to her.

“I think I’ll stick with the one.”

“Pretty girl like you, I think another drink will do you good.”

Her jaw clenches. This is why she rarely goes out. Men like him who can’t get the hint, they think if they are persistent enough, a girl will just give in. She opens her mouth to give him a piece of her mind, but is cut off.

“The lady said no, mate. I think it best you take head of her word.” Killian growls.

She looks back and forth between the two men.

Dirty Blonde chuckles. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know the bartender had say in the matter.”

“I do when you’re speaking to my girlfriend. So why don’t you back off before you and I have a problem?”

Her mouth pops open and she sucks in a breath at his words. She has known this man for less than a week and she should not be feeling giddy over the fact that he called her his girlfriend to fend off some creep.

Dirty Blonde gives a nod with a sigh before he stands up and walks away. Killian zones out and his brows pinches together.

“Killian?”

He doesn’t flinch. She tries again, but still gets nothing. It’s not until she reaches forward and grabs his left wrist that he finally looks at her.

“Hey, Killian. Are you okay?”

His nose twitches and he gives a slight nod. Her face drops when she recognizes the look in his eyes because she’s seen it in her own. It’s the look of past pain.

His eyes move down to her hand that’s still on his wrist and she pulls it away. She ignores how her fingers tingle and wraps them around her glass.

“Sorry, love.”

She chuckles nervously and shakes her head. “You don’t have to say sorry to me. You might have to say sorry to your fan girls over there though that now think you have a girlfriend.”

He looks over at the corner of the bar and snorts. His body relaxes and he’s back to his normal self.

“I’d be more worried about your mark,” he motions his head to behind her. “He just walked in.”

Her head snaps back to the direction of the door as she sees her mark walk through the door. She gives him a small smile and sits up in her stool while he leans against the back of the bar.

“Aye, mate. What can I get you?” he calls out to the man.

The mark steps up to the bar right next to her. She flips her hair over her shoulder and sees from the corner of her eye that he’s looked at her.

“I’ll have a bud and whatever this angel is having,” he says as he points to Emma.

She bites her lip and gives a flirty smile. Killian presses his lips together and turns to get the drinks.

“Tom,” he introduces himself with a handshake.

“Emma,” Killian places the beer and her drink down on the bar. She picks it up and clinks her glass against his bottle. “Thanks for this.”

Tom turns to her and leans his elbow against the bar. “No thanks needed. I should be the one thanking you.”

Emma tilts her head and Tom smiles.

“You, Emma, are by far, the sexiest woman in this bar.”

She jumps when a bottle slams onto the bar further down from them but quickly recovers and forces herself to blush.

“Why thank you.”

Tom’s smile widens and he leans in. “I’m so glad I decided to come here tonight.”

His hand moves down and he starts to run his fingers over the outside of her right wrist. The register behind the bar slams shut but she ignores it.

“I am, too,” she whispers.

Tom gets even closer and she can feel his thighs brush against her knees.

“Hm, why is that?”

She breaths out a chuckle. “Because I get to meet a guy like you. Handsome… charming…”

Tom smirks. “Go on.”

Emma hums. “The kind of guy, now stop me if I’m wrong, who refuses to pay his child support payments, gets arrested, then ditches his court date.”

Tom goes stiff. “What?”

“And the worst part? The mother. She’s struggling to raise three kids after you left her with no job or income and how do you repay them? By going out to a bar and hitting on women.”

His jaw locks. “You’re a bail bondsman.”

She squints and tilts her head. “Bails bonds person.”

He cracks his neck and put his beer on the bar before he runs for the exit, his hand hits her glass and it dumps into her lap. She stands up and wipes her hands down her dress.

“Really?” she huffs before she turns and follows the man out of the bar.

She catches as he runs down an alley. She jogs down the street and turns the corner. Tom jumps into his car and tries to start it, but the ten-year-old car fails him.

Walking up, she catches the door as he opens it.

“You don’t have to do this, okay? I can pay you. I got money.”

She laughs and shakes her head. “No, you don’t. And if you did, you should give it to the mother of your children to take care of your family.”

Tom turns to climb out the passenger side of the car, but the door jerks open and she’s shocked to see Killian sit down in the seat, affectively blocking Tom’s exit.

“Howdy,” he says in the worst southern accent Emma has ever heard in her entire life and a big smile.

Tom looks back and forth between them and takes huffs.

“The hell you know about family, huh?” he spits up at her.

Emma clenches her jaw as her heart starts to pound. She reaches forward, grabs Tom’s head and slams it against the steering wheel. Tom groans as he reaches up to cradle his broken nose. Killian raises his eyebrows and leans his over to look at her.

“You alright, love?”

She lets out a sigh and squares her shoulders. “Fine.”

Once the cops take Tom away, Killian and Emma find themselves standing on the curb outside of the bar watching the car drive away.

“I don’t mean to upset you, Emma, but I think we make quite the team.”

Her brow goes together at the familiarity of his words. When she looks at him, he gives her a smile and she shakes the thoughts out of her head.

“It seems I have to thank you again.”

His tongue pokes out to lick his bottom lip. “I do like it when you thank me.”

She pinches his arm and he chuckles.

“Speaking of you thanking me again, where’s your boy while you’re out slamming chap’s heads into steering wheels?”

She smiles at his thoughtfulness and rubs her hands up and down her arms.

“He’s staying over a friend’s house.”

He nods. “Right, first sleepover. He told me about that.” She looks over at him and he gives her blank look. “What? Don’t look so surprised, love. Your boy and I have become pretty close this past week.”

Shaking her head, she mumbles, “Henry doesn’t talk to anybody.”

“Something he gets from his mother, I wager.”

She throws him a look. “Really?”

He chuckles. “Come inside. Don’t let a man drink alone.”

“You’re working and I’m not getting drunk with you.”

He wiggles his eyebrows at her. “Afraid you’ll find me even more irresistible after a few libations?”

“Do you actually listen to yourself when you talk or do words just come out?”

He barks out a laugh. “Oh, Swan, you do make me laugh.”

Emma giggles. “Maybe I’ll come in for one drink.”

They turn to walk back into the bar. “I’m winning you over, I can feel it.”

She ends up staying until closing, and once the bar is empty, they stay to have a couple more drinks. She can’t remember the last time she laughed so hard or the last time she felt so comfortable with someone.

“You _cannot_ throw bottles like in Cocktail.”

“I bloody well can,” he insists.

Snorting, she shakes her head, “Every bartender claims they can, but no one does it.”

He scoffs and grabs a bottle from behind the bar before holding it for her to examine.

“Don’t think I’m taking my eyes off of you for one second.”

“I would despair if you did.”

He gives her a cheeky grin before he tosses the bottle in the air, she watches as the bottle flips in the air before he catches it with his right hand behind his back.

He pulls it to his front and she claps.

“Told you I could do it…” He takes a step forward and the bottle falls out of his hand and falls to the ground.

She lets out a loud laugh and his cheeks tint.

“That was your fault and you know it,” he says in between laughs and he leans down to pick up the discarded bottle.

She snorts and nods. “Right, it was all me. It has nothing to do with the fact that it’s physically impossible.”

He puts the bottle on the bar.

“Bad form to point out a man’s disability, Swan.”

Her nose scrunches together. “What disability?”

He brings his glass to his lips and holds up his prosthetic hand. “The fact that I only have one hand.”

“You only have one hand?!” She gasps out in surprise.

He spits his rum out he laughs so hard.

“Ahh!” She cries out in between her laughter as the rum lands on her dress. “And I didn’t mean that! I meant no one can do it!”

He shakes his head at her as they continue to laugh.

“Well, I think this dress needs to officially be retired.” She says as she uses napkins to pat herself dry.

Killian sucks in a breath. “That’s a bloody shame.”

She rolls her eyes. “It may be pretty, but it’s not all that comfortable.”

He shakes his head. “Your discomfort is a cross I’m willing to bare.”

“Mhm, like you don’t get an eyeful every night you work here.”

He pours them both another drink. “How do you mean?”

“Oh, please, you’re telling me you don’t eat it up? All the girls that ride this bar just to get some of your attention?”

Giving another chuckle, he lifts his glass of rum to his mouth. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, love.”

She leans her elbows on the bar. “Want to know a secret?”

He puts his glass back down and mirrors her pose.

“Always.”

“I’m pretty good at telling when people are lying,” he raises his eyebrow and she shrugs. “Henry calls it my super power.”

“Well aren’t you just full of surprises.” She gives him a pointed look and he relents. “I don’t ‘eat it up’ as you say. But I can’t say that I haven’t used it to my advantage.”

She smacks her hands together and sits back on the stool. “I knew it. You’re just a regular Casanova.”

He looks down at the bar before he gives her a shy smile. “Yes, well, it’s easier than the other option.”

She lifts her glass and waves it in the air. “I’ll drink to that.”

They both sip their drinks and look at each other.

“So tell me, Swan. What does a beautiful girl like you do when you’re not trailing chaps that skip their bail?”

“Well, I usually just spend time with Henry.”

“Aye, I know that,” he leans forward. “I’m talking about what you do for fun. What do you and your friends do?”

She shrugs. “Kind of a loner. What about you?”

He reaches up to scratch his ear. “A loner, too. I’m afraid. Never found much need to make friends.”

She breaths out a chuckle.

“Yeah, well,” she holds her glass up to him. “We are the only friends we need.”

He clinks his glass to hers and smirks.

“Right you are, love.” He takes a gulp of his drink. “And as your one and only friend, I have a request.”

She crosses her arms over the bar. “What would that be?”

He mirrors her pose. “To get to know you better.”

Her eyes crinkle. “Haven’t we already been doing that?”

Killian chuckles and looks down at his arms before he looks back up at her. “Aye, but I want to know things that no one else does. Tell me all your dark secrets, Swan.”

Emma laughs and shakes her head. “That’s not happening!”

“Oh, come on,” she shakes her head. “Okay. How about this? When we hang out, just you and me, I get to ask you a question and you have to tell me the truth.”

“How will you know if it’s the truth?”

He smirks and stands up fully. “You’re something of an open book.”

She scoffs. “Really?”

“Quite. Let’s see,” his finger taps on his chin before he points at her. “Tonight, whenever you got hit on, it never bothered you. Even when they said some very crass things.”

She blushes. Earlier that night a guy did try to pick her up by saying he wanted to feel her legs wrapped around him, she thought Killian was too far away to hear it.

“But when the bloke you were looking for mentioned family, you reacted. Very violently, I might add. Which tells me what he said must be true.”

She looks up at him through her eyelashes.

“And because I know you have a family with your boy, that means what he said rings true for something else. Something from before. You’re an orphan.”

She lifts her drink to her lips and takes a nice size sip. When she looks up, she’s given a shy smile and look of understanding.

“You’re right. I’m an orphan who is a loner and only hangs out with her kid. Still want to be friends?” She asks shyly.

“Of course,” he answers without hesitation. “Besides, we all have things in our past.”                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

She swallows another sip of her drink. “Family?”

“No family.” When her mouth falls open he chuckles. “It seems we’re more alike than you think.”

Her eyes roll. “Okay, fine. I will agree to your request.”

He gives her a wide grin before picking up the towel up to wipe the bar down. She watches as he pushes his sleeves up and catches a glimpse of the tattoo on his right forearm.

“Who’s Milah?”

He goes stiff and his eyes move up to her before they quickly look down at his arm. He pulls his sleeve down to cover the tattoo.

“Someone from long ago,” he mumbles before he turns his back to her.

“Where is she?”

He huffs out a breath and throws the towel down. “She’s gone.”

They stay silent for a couple seconds before she clears her throat.

“I should probably get going, it’s getting pretty late.”

“If you want to wait a tick, I’ll clear this up and we can walk home.” She raises her eyebrow at him and he chuckles. “We do live in the same building, love. Next to each other, I might add.”

She bites her lip and she’s not sure if it’s because of the rum, or because how he makes her feel, but she gives him a flirty smile.

“But you’ve thought about it.”

He puts their glasses in a sink behind the bar before he moves to stand in front of her and leans closer with a smirk.

“Aye, but so have you.”

_Well, he’s got me there._


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The only thing I ask people to remember is that this is a CURSED Killian. He is now knowledgeable in the ways of the 21st Century. :D Also, double break lines mean POV change! Happy Reading!

“You should give me your number,” Killian says as they step off the elevator in their apartment complex.

Emma arches her eyebrow up at him.

“For emergency purposes, of course.”

She rolls her eyes at his lame attempt but hands her phone over anyway. Killian calls his phone and waits until he feels it vibrate in his pocket before handing it back to her.

When they reach her door, he leans against the frame as she pulls her keys out.

“Thank you for tonight, Killian. It’s been a long time since I was able to just relax and have adult time.” His eyebrows raise and she smacks him in the chest. “You know what I mean perv!”

Killian chuckles and shakes his head. “You are very welcome, Swan. I’m always happy to spend adult time with a beautiful woman.”

When she looks up at him, he bites his bottom lip and gives her a leer, but when her eyes move to his lips his heart picks up.

She lets out a stuttering breath and her eye lashes flutter.

They are so close, all Killian has to do is move his head a couple inches and his lips will be on hers. Emma sways on her feet and she reaches up to rub the bottom of his jacket.

His heart pounds in his chest and his throat starts to go dry. Killian’s done nothing but think about her since the moment they met and at night, she fills his dreams. All he wants to do is pull her to him and kiss her senseless.

But he doesn’t, because in the short time that he’s spent with her, he’s learned quite a bit.

Killian knows that if he kisses her, it won’t just stop there. They will end up going inside and doing things friends certainly do _not_ do, and he has no doubt that it will be amazing, but then she’ll wake up tomorrow morning and everything will change. She’ll realize what they did and be distant. She’ll avoid him and he won’t be able to get to know her, and, he’ll lose Henry.

That thought alone makes his stomach drop.

He knows all this, because if she were any other woman, he’d do the same thing. But she isn’t, she’s Emma.

He opens his mouth to tell her they should call it a night but she speaks first.

“I should probably get inside,” she whispers.

The way she is rubbing the bottom of his jacket between her thumb and forefinger tells him she’s been thinking the same as he and he knows then he’s going to have to be the one that backs off. Killian swallows the lump in his throat.

“Aye,” he breathes out.

Emma looks up at him through her eyelashes and he knows if he doesn’t get out of there soon, he’s going to lose himself in her beautiful green eyes. But Emma makes the decision for him.

She takes a step back and gives him a small smile.

“Goodnight, Killian.”

“Goodnight, Swan.”

He waits until she’s safely inside before he goes into his own flat. When he shuts the door, he leans his head back and closes his eyes. Emma Swan is going to be the death of him.

That night, he dreams they are on an island, greenery surrounding them, when she pulls him to her and kisses him like he’s never been kissed before.

When he wakes the following morning, the first thing he thinks about is Emma. He grabs his phone to see if she wants to grab some coffee but he finds that she sent him a text an hour before.

**I’ve been called into work and my head is pounding. I blame you, Jones. – E**

He laughs out loud.

**Hungover, my dear Swan? Pity, I don’t get those. – K**

**You suck. – E**

Later, he’s walking to down the hall toward his flat after his jog when he sees Henry coming out of his own.

“Hey, lad!”

Henry’s eyes light up and it makes him smile.

“Killian! You’re home.”

“Aye, what are you up to this afternoon?”

The lad’s cheeks turn red and he looks back at his door before he answers.

“Well… I was just going to go down to the store and get something to eat.”

Killian quirks an eyebrow at him. He knows for a fact that Emma doesn’t like to leave him alone and she really wouldn’t want him to leave if she wasn’t around. He doesn’t like the idea, either. New York can be a dangerous and it’s no place for an eleven-year-old to be wandering the streets by himself.

“Emma still at work?”

“Yeah.”

His lips twitch and he loops his thumb through his belt.

“You know your mother wouldn’t want you leaving the flat by yourself, lad.”

Henry lets out a sigh and his shoulders sag.

“I know, but I’m hungry and there’s nothing in there that I want. I can go down to the store by myself, I’m not a baby,” he groans.

Killian smirks at his frustration. Henry always wants to be treated like an adult but he’s still just a young boy inside, especially with wanting to leave and not eat regular food.

“Well, I’m sorry, my boy, I can’t let you roam the streets by yourself,” Henry lets out a huff. “But I do propose a solution. How about you and I play video games and I’ll order us some pizza’s?”

Henry’s face lights up again and it makes his whole day. They spend the whole day eating pizza and playing video games, then later, when Emma walks through the door, he tries to ignore the way his heart skips a beat when she smiles at him and offers her pain killers to help with her headache.

He laughs and Henry giggles when she tosses a pillow at his head with a roll of her eyes.

That Sunday, Emma cooks breakfast and invites him over. They spend the day together at Central Park and when Henry runs to take a picture of the fountain, he asks her his first question.

“Where did you live before here?”

“Boston. There was a fire, we lost everything. I decided to move here and get a new start.”

Killian nods as they watch Henry run around the fountain. It’s not the first time he’s noticed their stories are similar, but he doesn’t comment on it.

“Good start so far?” He asks her shyly as he kicks a rock in front of him.

When he looks up her she bites her lip and brushes her hair over her shoulder.

“So far, so good.”

He grins.

* * *

 

Killian isn’t sure exactly how it happens, but things start to change. Emma and Henry become a permanent fixture in his life and there’s barely a day that goes by that he doesn’t see them.

When he isn’t at work, he spends his nights with them both, then when Henry goes to bed, it’s just him and Emma.

He feels drawn to her in a way he hasn’t felt since Milah. It thrills and terrifies him at the same time. Emma Swan is unlike any person he has ever met before. There’s just something about her, she makes him want to be a better man. A man he always wanted to be.

Killian finds that after spending time with Henry and Emma, he drinks a lot less, and he can’t even remember the last time he had a female companion. They’ll still flirt with him every night he works at the pub, but he always goes home alone to dream about golden hair.

Though he is adamant about getting to know her, it doesn’t stop him for flirting. She’s a gorgeous woman and he just can’t seem to help himself around her. It probably has to do with the fact that she gives back just as good. He’ll say an innuendo just to make her blush, and she’ll fire back with something that ends up making him blush.

He’s loving it all.

He continues to ask her questions and she always tells him the truth. Most of them are random, just little thoughts that pop in his head, but they are giving him glimpses into the woman that he knows she keeps hidden from the world.

“What was your favorite movie as a child?” he asks her one night when she comes to his flat to pick up Henry.

Sometimes he and the lad get carried away with either a game or their chats and lose track of time.

She looks at him like he’s grown two heads and he chuckles. “Indulge me, love.”

Emma puts her hands in her back pockets and sighs. “Peter Pan.”

Killian leans his elbow against the island in his kitchen. “Really?”

She nods. “An island full of orphaned kids that never grow up? Totally something I wanted.”

“Ah, but they all left the island at the end because they wanted a home.”

“Yeah, well, I always stopped the movie before that happened.”

Killian snorts. “Next you’ll be telling me Captain Hook was your favorite character.”

“Hey, it’s not his fault that little boy messed with him. You don’t know his story,” she argues.

He shakes his head.

“I’m telling you. Watch it again, you’ll see.”

“As you wish.”

She waves and walks out. The smile stays on his face the rest of the night as he watches Peter Pan.

* * *

 

He’s out for his morning jog down by the docks when his music stops and his phone starts to ring. Killian hasn’t been out on the water since he moved to New York, but the sight of them does send a wave of calm through him like nothing else can. He stops running and pulls the phone from his pocket.

Emma’s face flashes on the screen and he can’t help but smile. It’s a photo she texted him one night while he was at work. She has on an overly large, red suede pirates hat on her head, that has a white feather on the front, her face is scrunched together in an adorable glare and her finger is held up and curled into a hook.

He laughed for a good five minutes when he read her message after the photo.

**Shiver me timbers, mate! – E**

Killian swipes his thumb to answer, puts the phone back in his pocket and continues his run.

“Swan, to what do I owe the pleasure?”

“I need a favor, and yes, I know you love it when I ask you for favors,” he can practically hear her eye roll.

“I do love it,” he breaths out.

“Wh… what are you doing?”

He smirks. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

She gasps and he laughs.

“What do I do every morning I have off, love?”

Emma curses under her breath. “Right. Your morning jog… sorry. Wow, my mind was somewhere completely different.”

“Ohhh, I love it when your mind goes to other places.”

She rolls her eyes again; he just knows it.

“Can you watch Henry for me tonight? I got a lead on a perp and want to follow it through.”

“If you want to get close to me, you just need to ask. There’s no need to use the lad as an excuse.”

He hears her sigh. “Why am I not surprised you’re making this about you?”

Killian chuckles. “You promise you’ll be careful though, right?”

“Yes, _dad_!” she groans out and he laughs again.

He finds it extremely amazing at how much she could make him laugh in one conversation.

“I prefer daddy.” Killian hears her choke and decides to let her off the hook. “I can watch the lad, love. That’s no problem.”

She sighs into the phone. “You’re a life saver. I’ll text him to let him know. Enjoy your morning jog.”

“Talk to you later, Swan.”

“Oh, and Killian?”

“Aye?”

Her voice is low and seductive, “Thank you, daddy.”

Killian trips over his own feet and has to catch himself before he falls flat on his face. He hears her giggle as she hangs up the phone and his music starts back up.

Later that night, after Henry has gone to bed, he’s lounged on her couch reading a book when she finally walks in.

“I’m so sorry,” she says as she takes her coat off and puts it on the back of one of the dining room chairs.

Killian closes his book and sits up.

“S’ no problem, love. How did everything go?”

She groans and walks into the kitchen. When she finally emerges, she has two glasses in her hand and a bottle of his favorite rum.

He tries to ignore how happy it makes him to know that she stocks what he enjoys in her kitchen.

“It was a dead end. The worst part was that I had to drive to Jersey. Ugh, the Jersey expressway is the worst!”

Emma offers him a glass and they clink their drinks together. They spend the next hour sitting on her couch talking about nothing in particular. He knows that he’s stalling. Of all the questions he’s asked her in the last couple weeks, there was one that he’s hesitated on and it’s the one he wants to know about the most.

“Okay, what’s wrong?”

“Hm?”

“You have this look. What’s up?” she asks as she pulls her leg up onto the couch and turns to him.

Killian lets out a sigh and forces a smile. “It’s nothing, love.”

“Mm no. You have something face. Spill.”

He rubs the back of his neck. “I know what my next question is.”

“Fire away.”

“Where’s Henry’s father?”

Emma lifts up her drink and takes a sip. “I was wondering when you were going to ask me that.”

He shakes his head. “Look, you don’t have to tell me…”

“No,” she puts her arm on his shoulder. “It’s fine. It’s just… Henry doesn’t know. I’m going to tell him, but I just don’t think he’s ready yet. So…”

His hand moves to her knee. “I wouldn’t dare speak a word of it, love. On my honor.”

Killian listens as she tells him the story about Henry’s father and by the time she’s done, he feels torn in two. Part of him wants to go out and find Neal Cassidy so that he can beat him to a bloody pulp. But another part wants to pull her into his arms and tell her how sorry he is.

Sorry she had to do go through that, it’s unspeakable.

Sorry she had her heartbroken, because gods know she deserves to be worshiped and loved properly.

But he just listens.

After she’s done, he can tell she is nervous. Emma isn’t one to share and on the rare occasions she does, she always got quiet afterwards.

To even the playing field, he decides to tell her about Liam and Milah.

“I had an older brother,” he says after a few moments of silence.

Emma looks up from her glass of at him with wide eyes. “Really?”

He nods with a tight smile. “His name was Liam. He raised me.”

“What happened to him?”

Killian takes a deep breath and starts before he loses his courage. She listens intently as he speaks, and when he starts to choke up, she laces her fingers through his own. When he finishes, her head is on his shoulder and their hands are still together.

“Thank you for telling me,” she whispers.

He turns his head slightly so his nose is in her hair. She smells of coconuts and rum.

“Thank you for listening. I haven’t talked about them in a very long time.”

They sit in silence for a long time. He knows that he should go, he has to work the early shift at the pub tomorrow, but he finds that he’s glued to the couch.

His eyes close and he pictures an entirely different situation, where Emma wasn’t just a friend, but was his, and if he were to lean down and kiss the top of her head, he would be met with a smile, and not confusion.

A whimper breaks him from his thoughts and when he looks down, he sees that Emma has fallen asleep.

Though it almost pains him to do it, he pulls his hand from hers and moves to lift her up into his arms. Emma lets out a little hum and buries her head into his chest as he walks her back to her room. He softly lays her down on the bed and she immediately turns onto her side to snuggle into the pillow.

He removes her boots and places them on the floor before he lifts the blanket and pulls it over her.

His jaw clenches as he watches her sleep for a few more seconds. What surprises him more than anything is the strong ache to crawl into bed next to her.

Killian wipes his lips and walks out of the room.

His feelings for Emma grow stronger every day, each moment he spends with her, he just gets sucked in more and more. But how can he love again when he can’t let go of Milah?

All he knows is that he’s a shell of a man, and Emma deserves a much better than him.


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The only thing I ask people to remember is that this is a CURSED Killian. He is now knowledgeable in the ways of the 21st Century. :D Also, double break lines mean POV change! Happy Reading!

Killian Jones quickly becomes someone Emma can rely on and it’s a feeling she isn’t used to. Throughout her entire life, she’s never had anyone she can rely on, besides Henry, and then Killian shows up and flips her world upside down. He’s always there, no matter if she asks him to be or not, he’s _always_ there.

Even when they work opposite shifts and don’t see each other, they always speak.

**Will you go get arrested then skip bail so I have something to do? – E**

**Sure thing, love. Do you prefer piracy or vandalism? – K**

**Pirate. Always go with the pirate. – E**

**As you wish. – K**

She would be lying if she said that she doesn’t have feelings for him and it scares her to death. They’ve only known each other for a little over four months and the last time she fell for someone that fast, she found herself in jail and pregnant.

But something in her tells her that Killian isn’t like that. Besides his flirting and innuendos, Killian was nothing but a gentleman, and seems just as incapable of leaving her be, for even a day, just like she was incapable of leaving him be.

His questions always left her curious and laughing. Besides the night he asked her about Neal, they are never intrusive or inappropriate, but funny and completely random.

“What’s your favorite color?” he asks her one night they are having tea after Henry goes to sleep.

He’s wearing a pair of running pants, with a gray V-neck t-shirt under a dark green zip up hoodie. Emma tries not to stare at the way the charms on his necklace lay in his chest hair.

“Really? My favorite color? What will that tell you?”

“Knowing a woman’s favorite color tells a man a lot!”

Emma shakes her head with a smile. Her favorite color is yellow, but as she stares into his eyes, she finds herself saying something different.

“Blue.”

He looks at her in wonder before she bites her lip and takes a sip of her tea.

“What about you?”

Killian leans forward on the table and gives her a smirk. “Green.”

Her eyes snap up to his and the way his ears turn pink gives her butterflies.

That night she dreams of them climbing a green beanstalk with the blue sky surrounding them.

**I’m bored. – K**

Emma smiles as she sits back in her chair. She hasn’t seen Killian since the night before last, he was wearing a gray cotton t-shirt under a blue button down that brought out the color of his eyes. Emma knows this because she spent most of the night trying not to stare, she always seems to be doing that around him. He had to work the night shift the night before and was asked to work a double that day. She only missed him a lot.

**Hello, bored. I’m Emma! – E**

**Hardy, har, har. You’re a bloody riot, Swan. – K**

**I’m a comical genius. I should open my own comedy club. – E**

Her desk phone rings just as Killian responds and she has to put her cell down to answer it.

“Hello, can I help you?”

“Yes, I’m calling from New York Elementary for Emma Swan.”

She immediately sits up in her desk. “This is her.”

“Hello, Miss. Swan. My name is Mrs. Morrison and I’m calling about your son, Henry.”

Her heart pounds in her chest and panic starts to rise.

“Is everything okay? Is he…”

“It seems Henry isn’t feeling too well. His teacher sent him down to the nurse’s office earlier so that he could lay down, but it seems like he’s still not feeling any better. We think it might be best you come get him.”

Emma’s brows go together. Henry never mentioned anything that morning about not feeling well, but that doesn’t surprise her. He is a lot like her when it comes to his feelings and emotions.

“Yes, of course. I’ll leave work now. I should be there in about twenty minutes.”

She hangs up the phone and dials her bosses number.

“Hey, Roger, it’s Emma. My kids school just called. He’s sick and I have to go pick him up.”

“Okay, Emma. Do me a favor and just let Colin know so he doesn’t disappear to take his long walks.”

She lets out a sigh and nods. “Will do. Thanks boss.”

Emma calls out to Colin who smiles at her and nods in response before she grabs her phone and her bag before she heads to her car. The phone vibrates in her hand and she checks the messages as she gets into her bug.

**Can it be clothing optional? ;) – K**

**Oi! Where did you go? If you got something interesting to do at work, that’s not fair. I’m stuck here another 12 bloody hours and I thought you promised to entertain me? – K**

She types out a quick text telling him she has to pick up Henry and starts the car. Emma isn’t even out of the parking lot when her phone starts to ring.

“What’s wrong with Henry?” Killian’s voice is laced with concern.

“The woman said he didn’t feel well…”

“Was he sick this morning?”

She shakes her head. “No. At least he didn’t mention anything. I’m on my way there now.”

“Okay, be safe driving. Call me when you get home and let me know how he is.”

They say goodbye and she hangs up the phone. When she finally gets to the school, the halls are empty and the only sounds were the echoes from her steps.

“Hi,” she says as she walks into the main office. “I’m Emma Swan, I’m here to pick up my son.”

“Mom.”

Emma turns around and gasps. Henry walks in from a door with a teacher beside him. He looks pale and his eyes look sunken into his head. She rushes over to him and puts her hands on his face. His skin was clammy and a little warm, but he didn’t seem to have a fever.

“Hey, kid.”

Henry just shakes his head and wraps his arms around her waist. Emma brushes her hands through his hair and gives him a soft kiss on the top of his head. With a small smile to the teacher, she ushers Henry out of the school. He lays in the back instead of sitting in the front and that makes Emma worry.

Her mind races as she tries to think about what she has at the apartment that she would be able to give him.

“Henry, what’s wrong? Is it your stomach?”

Henry groans. “I feel sick. I threw up my breakfast.”

She sighs. “Okay. We’ll be home soon.”

It takes a little longer to get back to their apartment due to the midday traffic, but when they do, Emma takes his jacket and book bag and tells him to go get dressed in his pajamas. She checks the cabinet where she usually keeps medicine and curses when she finds only empty bottles of pain killers and Band-Aids.

Her cell phone rings and when she pulls it out, she sees that it’s Killian.

“Hey…”

“How’s he doing?”

Emma shoulders her phone as she goes into the kitchen to check for food.

“I think it’s a bug. He’s not running a fever but he says he threw up his breakfast. I’m going to see if I can get him to eat soup and if he keeps that down maybe give him some toast.”

Her idea is crushed when she sees her cabinets are bare.

“You don’t have any of that stuff, you didn’t go food shopping this week, remember?”

Her eyes close and she lets out a huff. Her and Killian were supposed to go food shopping the last time she saw him but she got a lead on a perp and had to run.

“Yeah, maybe I can get Mrs. Cuse down the hall…”

“I think I might have some soup in my flat. Go over and take whatever you need. Henry has a key.”

She closes her cabinets and picks her phone up from her shoulder. “My son has a key to your apartment?”

“Aye. Can I talk to the lad?”

Emma shakes her head and walks into Henry’s bedroom to see him buttoning his pajama top.

“Hey, kid. Killian wants to talk to you.” Emma hands him the phone. “I’m going over to his place to see if I can find anything for you to eat. Do you have the key to his apartment?”

He motions to his keys that were laying on his desk as his face goes even paler. “Mom, I don’t want to eat anything.”

She runs her hand over his forehead. “I know. But you have to at least drink some fluids.”

He sighs and puts the phone to his ear.

“Hi Killian,” she hears him mumble as she walks out of the room.

She walks into Killian’s apartment and heads straight for the kitchen. Under any other circumstance, she would have felt weird about going through his kitchen without him there, but she knew she had to find something for Henry to eat.

Emma checks his cabinets and is relieved when she finds a couple cans of chicken noodle soup. She grabs them and places them on the counter along with a pack of crackers before she checks the fridge for something to drink. She spots a couple of Gatorades and grabs one. When she closes the door, what she sees makes her stop.

Under a magnet bottle opener are the photos she gave him of the three of them. The week prior, she took Henry to Dave & Buster’s for dinner. Killian met up with them when he was done his early shift at the bar and the three of them spent the night together playing games. She remembers how the blue plaid shirt he was wearing made her wish he always wore plaid.

Before they left, Henry begged to get a photo in the small photo booth. Emma refused so Henry and Killian went in. She should have known she was in for trouble. Because after they took two photos, they pulled Emma in against her will.

The first photo on the strip was of Henry and Killian smiling at the camera. The second was them looking out to the side. The third was them laughing with half of Emma’s arm and shoulder blocking the camera. The fourth had Killian staring at Emma, his mouth open, like he was in the middle of speaking, his eyes were bright with amusement as he pulled her arm to him, Henry was in the middle, he had his eyes closed and his face scrunched up from laughter and Emma’s right hand covered her eyes as she bit her lip. The last, and final picture on the strip was the best. They were all looking at the camera, Killian sat on the left, Emma was on the right, Henry was in the middle with an arm around each adult, and they all were smiling.

Emma lifts her hand up and her fingers brush across the photo strip. Killian’s apartment was so bare, nothing to show that was personal, or might have meant something, but there, on his fridge, were photos of her and her son.

Tears pool in her eyes. Her feelings for Killian are growing stronger as each day passes and she knows if she doesn’t do something about it she’s going to end up doing something she will regret.

* * *

Emma is sitting on the couch with Henry’s head in her lap when there’s a knock on her door. She checks her watch and frowns when she sees that it’s a little after five. There’s another knock and she has to lift Henry’s head softly so that he doesn’t wake when she stands.

When she looks out the peep hole, her eyes go wide and she yanks the door open.

“What are you doing? I thought you had to work a double?”

Killian walks in past her with plastic bags on each arm.

“I called Barry and asked him to fill in. He owed me. How’s Henry?”

“He’s sleeping on the couch,” she tells.

She has to jog to catch up with him he’s moved so fast down the hall.

Killian puts the bags on her kitchen counter and moves into the living room. Curiosity gets the better of her and she looks into the bags. The first bag is filled with cans of soup, the good kind, not the store brand Killian had in his cabinets, two loafs of bread, crackers and some tea. While the other bag has some medicine, Gatorade and a two liter of Ginger ale. 

When her eyes move back to the living room, she sees Killian standing up from his crouched position in front of the couch as he takes off his jacket and tosses it on a chair in the corner. He lifts the untouched bowl of soup off the table and brings it into the kitchen.

“I guess he wasn’t up for eating?”

Emma shakes her head. “No. I think his stomach was still acting up. I should probably wake him and try to get him to eat again though.”

Killian nods and moves to the bags he brought in. “Aye… maybe some tea will help? And the ginger ale.”

Her brows go together as a feeling starts to form in the pit of her stomach. Emma has been taking care of Henry on her own since the day he was born, and this isn’t the first time he’s been sick. Sure, she’s a little unprepared, but she’s dealt with worse and Killian is acting as if he can just walk right in a fix everything.

“Killian, you don’t have to do this. I mean, I know how to take care of my sick kid.”

It comes out with a little more malice than she intends, but she felt as if he was questioning her mothering skills.

He stops unloading the bags and looks at her in offense. “Really, Swan? That’s why you think I’m here? Because I don’t think you can take care of him?”

The second the words are out of his mouth she feels like an asshole. Since they first met, Killian has always had Henry’s best interest at heart, but more importantly, always looked to her first before he made any decision regarding her son.

When she doesn’t respond, Killian lets out a sigh and runs a hand through his hair. “I’m here because I was worried about him. I don’t doubt your skills as a mother, love. I just wanted to help.”

Mixed emotions wash over her as she presses her lips together and nods. She wants to apologize but she can’t seem to find the words, because her heart is about to burst.

Killian Jones is slowing killing her.

Emma wakes Henry and tries to ignore the way his face lights up when he sees Killian. When she walks out of the bathroom her heart flutters when she hears her sons whisper.

“I’m sorry for making you leave work. I just wasn’t feeling well…”

Killian puts his hand on Henry’s shoulder and leans down closer to him. “Henry, you asked me to be here, so I’m here. It’s no trouble.”

She takes a step back into the bathroom and bites her lip. Her son came home early from school because he was sick and asked Killian to come over. It seems her own feelings for their neighbor aren’t the only ones that are growing.

Emma has to take a deep breath and check her face before she walks back out into the room. Killian obviously was going to keep the fact Henry asked him to come over between him and her son and she doesn’t want to spoil that by letting them know she heard them.

Henry drinks the tea and Ginger Ale without question, then when Killian suggests he try the soup again, he does it without any argument. Emma acts like she doesn’t notice. When he keeps the soup down, his appetite comes back and he asks Emma to make him a grilled cheese.

He smiles around the sandwich when the two adults reluctantly agree to have a Harry Potter marathon with him. They are only a quarter of the way through the second film when Henry starts to snore on the couch.

Emma runs her hand through his hair and snuggles him closer to her side. When she looks up she has to bite her lip to hide her smile. Killian sat at the other end of the couch with his head tilted back and his eyes closed.

She finds herself looking him over as he sleeps. There’s a scar on his right cheek and his jaw, perfectly angled, always has the right amount of scruff on it. His lips, gods, his lips, they look like pure heaven. Many times, though she’ll never admit it anyone, she fantasized about those lips while she laid in bed at night and let her mind wander. How they would feel against her skin… how they would taste.

A crash on the screen causes her to jump and she has to shake her head from the thoughts of Killian and his dangerous lips.

The sound from the TV must be loud enough to wake him, because Killian blinks his eyes open and looks over at her. Her heart flutters when he gives her a shy smile.

“Apologies, Swan. I didn’t realize how tired I was.”

She gives him a smile before she moves to get up. Henry is leaning against her side so when she stands, Killian holds onto him and lays him back down gently.

“You should go get some sleep,” Emma whispers as Killian stands and stretches. “He’ll probably sleep through the rest of the night.”

He lets out a yawn and nods. Her cheeks blush as he reaches under his shirt to scratch his stomach and she sees his skin poke out. She moves to walk him to the door when he leans down and to throw a quilt over Henry before he grabs his jacket and follows her. When they get to the door she leans back on the wall.

“You sure you won’t get in trouble for leaving work?”

Killian shakes his head. “No. Barry and I switch all the time, it’ll be fine. What about you?”

Emma shrugs. “I called Roger. Colin was there so it wasn’t a big deal.”

“Oh, Colin!” He says in a high pitch tone and an eye roll.

“Don’t be jealous.” She answers with a smirk.

Colin is a moderately attractive man a couple years her senior. He offered to show her around New York when she first started at her job, and she made the mistake of telling Killian about it. He, of course, took that as Colin having a crush on her and hasn’t liked him since.

“Why would I be jealous? Although, he is the only other male, besides meself, that you talk to on a daily basis. Maybe you’re the one who has feelings for him.”

She snorts and shakes her head. “You’re a crazy person.”

“I prefer dashing rapscallion,” he says with a wave of his hand. When she presses her lips at him he raises his eyebrow. “Scoundrel?”

They both share a laugh before she pushes herself off the wall.

“You didn’t have to bring all that stuff, but I do appreciate it.”

“S’not a problem.”

“What do I owe you?”

He rolls his eyes and Emma just shakes her head. He never accepts money from her even though she always offers it.

“Thank you,” she whispers.

Killian takes a step forward and he whispers, “Perhaps gratitude is in order?”

“Yeah, that’s what the ‘thank you’ was for.”

His eyes move down the hall then back to her as he whispers, “Is that all your boy’s health is worth to you.”

Emma’s eyes go wide and he smirks. His hand moves up to his lips and he taps them. She breaths out a chuckle, it isn’t the first time Killian’s joked about her kissing him as a form of payment, but she always just rolls her eyes and ignores him. To which he always laughs and makes some kind of joke. After two months of being together almost every day, they are both used to and comfortable with the flirty banter they exchange.

But there is something different about this time. As he taps his lips she finds herself wanting to kiss them, the feeling is stronger than ever, and she’s not sure if it’s because of the photos she knows that are hanging up on his fridge, or the fact that her son specifically asked him to be here and he uprooted his schedule just to do it, but she’s finding it hard to just laugh him off.  

“Please,” she breathes out. “You couldn’t handle it.”

Killian’s eyes sparkle as he steps even closer and she inhales his scent.

“Perhaps you’re the one that couldn’t handle it.” He whispers and her skin feels like it’s on fire.

Her eyes search his face and every reason why she shouldn’t kiss him vanishes. Before she even realizes what she’s doing, Emma grabs the lapels of his jacket, yanks him to her, and slams her lips against his.

It takes him about a half a second to catch on before his right hand is in her hair and his prosthetic is on her waist. The kiss starts out innocent, but quickly turns passionate. The grip Emma has on Killian’s jacket tightens and she pulls him even closer.

He gasps in her mouth and his hand pushes her face into his more. He lets out a groan as her tongue touches his lips before he opens his mouth and gives her what she wants. Emma feels herself being moved until her back presses against the wall and Killian’s body is against hers.

She can’t remember the last time it felt this good to just kiss someone, and damn, Killian is a good kisser. He devours her entire being and she feels completely light headed. His lips are soft but demanding and his tongue does magical things to her insides.

Killian is the one to pull away first and they both stand there as they struggle to breathe. Her hands stay gripped on his jacket and their foreheads touch. For seconds or minutes, neither is exactly certain, they just stand there in silence, panting. Emma’s eyes stay on his lips while her own tingle.

“That was…” he trails off in a whisper.

She breathes out a chuckle, but before she can answer, there’s the sound of a chair scrapping across the floor that echoes through the apartment before a door slams open. They pull apart right away and rush out of the hall. The couch is empty and Emma looks around.

“Henry?”

The sound of retching comes from the bathroom and she runs to the door. She gasps as she finds her son knelt over the toilet, the grilled cheese and soup expelling from his body.

“Oh, kid!” she gasps as she rushes to the sink to wet a towel.

Killian moves past her and kneels next to Henry on the floor. He rubs her sons back with his prosthetic while he mumbles to him.

“Don’t fight it, lad. Just let it out,” Killian reaches up with his right hand to move the hair away from Henry’s forehead and stops. He looks up at Emma in concern. “Swan.”

Emma drops the towel and leans down to feel his forehead.

“Shit, he’s burning up.”

Henry’s stomach finally empties but he continues to dry heave into the toilet. Emma picks the towel back up and Killian takes it.

“The antacid,” he says as he wipes the towel on the back of Henry’s neck. “I put it in your cabinet in the kitchen.”

Emma nods and rushes out to the kitchen. She grabs the bottle of antacid along with a Gatorade. Even though he’s sick, she knows Henry is going to hate the taste of it, he always does.

When she gets back to the bathroom, she sees Killian sitting back against the tub with Henry next to him, his head on the man’s shoulder.

“Hey, kid,” she whispers as she kneels in front of him. “You okay?”

Henry shakes his head before he leans forward and falls into his mother’s arms. She feels Killian take the medicine and drink out of her hand before she wraps her arms around her son. Her lips move to his forehead and she closes her eyes at how warm he is.

“I want you to try and take some of this medicine for me, okay?’

Henry groans and it causes both her and Killian to chuckle.

“I know, but it’ll make you feel better.”

She looks up just in time to see Killian open the medicine bottle with his teeth. He spits the cap to the ground and leans forward to hand it to Henry.

“Come on, lad. Just a quick swig.”

He sighs and sits up to take the bottle. Emma grabs the Gatorade from Killian as Henry swallows the medicine down. The two adults smile as he makes a grimace and sticks his tongue out in disgust.

“At a boy.”

“Good job, kid.”

He gulps the Gatorade until the bottle is half empty before he tries to get up. Emma and Killian both help him to his feet, but as soon as Henry stands, his face goes pale and his stomach starts to churn. They barely get him back to the toilet in time before he throws up not only the Gatorade he drank, but also the medicine.

Killian and Emma both rub the boys back as he throws up before they exchange a look.

“Looks like it’s going to be a long night.”


	6. Chapter Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the end gets a little... steamy. oh killian, what he does to me.

Killian and Emma spend the better part of the night in her bathroom with Henry. After he throws up the second time, he refuses to drink any more of the antacid or move.

At one point, they all dose off. Killian with his back against the tub, Henry’s legs over his own, and Emma across from him against the wall with her son’s head in her lap. They wake up when Henry starts to dry heave into the toilet bowl again.

Around three in the morning, they finally convince him to go to bed. Killian carries him while Emma walks next to them practically dead on her feet. When he’s finally in his bed and asleep, they walk out into the hall.

Emma follows him out into the living room and they both collapse onto the couch and fall asleep. Killian wakes the next morning, half laying on the couch, with Emma sprawled out on his chest. His heart picks up and he finds himself not wanting to move for fear that she will wake. His head moves down and he closes his eyes as he breathes her in. It’s been years since he’s woken with a woman in his arms and it confuses him at how right it feels.

He never believed she would actually take him up on his offer. He’s joked about it with her countless times before and she never flinched, then the night before, she goes and kisses him.

And the kiss… it haunts him. The way her lips felt against his own, the sounds of her little whimpers and moans. That kiss was the best kiss he ever experienced, but also the scariest.

Because that kiss exposed something he never believed could be true. He never thought he would be able to let go of his past, to move on, to find someone… until he met Emma.

He looks to the window and sees that the sun has barely risen and makes the decision to stay put. If he can steal more time with her in his arms, that’s what he’s going to do.

Killian falls back asleep and when he wakes up again, it’s to the smell of fresh coffee and Emma on the phone with Henry’s school telling them he won’t be in that day. He wants to stay, to make sure the lad is okay, and also maybe talk to her about what happened the night before, but he has the midday shift at the pub.

He wants to talk to her, but every time he sees her, it’s like she always makes sure Henry is around so it can’t be brought up. It kills him that they haven’t been able to discuss the kiss, but he’s just following her lead. She never mentions it, so he keeps quiet as well and for a week, they go back to their normal routine of flirty banter.

Just the night prior he sent her a text message after a particularly shitty night at the pub.

**A bloke came into the pub tonight, his name was Liam – K**

**I’m here if you want to talk. – E**

**Thank you, love. – K**

**Want me to send you something naughty? – E**

**YES! – K**

She sent him a picture of the word naughty and he laughed until his side hurts.

But still no mention of the kiss.

“I mean,” Henry starts. “I don’t get it. He says he likes her, but whenever she comes around to hang out with us, he just acts like she’s his friend.”

He sat on his couch with the young boy as they played Black Ops. It became sort of a weekly ritual for them. Whenever Emma works late, Henry will come to his flat so they could sneak a game in before she gets home.

“Aye?”

The boys’ fingers race over the paddle and he sees from the corner of his eye he shakes his head.

“I don’t understand why he doesn’t just tell her.”

“Well,” Killian moves his hand around as he holds the controller. “Maybe he knows she doesn’t like him back.”

Henry shakes his head. “She does, you can totally tell.”

Killian shrugs his shoulder. “Sounds like your mate is afraid.”

“But if she likes him too…”

“Aye, but that doesn’t make it easier. There’s always that slight chance she might not like him back and it scares him.”

Henry pauses the game and turns to him.

“Kind of like you and my mom?” Killian blinks. His mouth opens and closes a couple times before Henry rolls his eyes. “I see the way you are with each other; everybody already thinks you guys are together anyway.”

“Who’s everybody?”

Henry shrugs and resumes the game. “People in the building, my friends. It’s so obvious.”

Killian lets out a sigh as he gets killed in the game and puts the game paddle on the coffee table.

“Is it, now?” he asks in a mumble.

“Mhm,” the boy answers. “Are you ever going to ask her out?”

Killian reaches for his beer on the table and takes a big sip. “It’s a bit more complicated than that, Henry.”

“Adults always say that when they think kids don’t understand,” he pauses the game again and turns back to Killian. “But I see the way you two are together. Before she met you, my mom rarely laughed. I mean, she did with me, but with you? She does it all the time, and whenever you come over, she smiles nonstop.”

Killian can’t help the small smile that forms on his lips as he looks down at the beer bottle in his hand. He can’t deny what the boy is telling him because it’s the same for him. Before he met Emma, smiles and laughter were all too rare for him, but she makes him do both every time they are together.

Henry sighs. “Do you like my mom?” He pears at the boy for a couple seconds before he nods. “Then ask her out before someone else does.”

Henry turns back to his game and his face drops. It suddenly feels like all the air gets sucked out of the room. The thought of Emma with someone else literally makes him sick to his stomach and angry all at once.

His thoughts are interrupted when he hears his apartment door open.

“Hey guys!” Emma’s voice calls out.

Henry jumps to switch the game off while Killian stands to stall her. Two weeks before, he told her that there was no need to knock when she came over. She was more than welcome to walk in whenever she pleased. Emma argued, of course, until she finally agreed but only when Henry was there.

“’Ello, love.”

She smiles at him and he feels like he has waited all day just to see it.

“I’m going to cook a roast beef. You coming over for dinner?”

Killian leans against the island in his kitchen and smiles. “You keep feeding me, Swan, and I’m going to start thinking you might actually like me.”

Emma mirrors his stance and smirks. “Oh, well we can’t have that. I guess I should just let you eat the roman noodles in your cabinet or the cereal with the week old milk in your fridge.”

“Checking up on me, are you?”

She blushes and he smiles. Truth be told, he used to go food shopping once a week. But he may have forgotten to go once or twice just so that he could have dinner with Henry and Emma.

“Dinner will be ready in an hour. Make sure you both wash your hands before you come over.” Killian gives her a salute and she laughs. “I’m serious. He’s eleven, Killian. Gods know where his hands have been today.”

He snorts. “Right you are, love. But can’t we just pretend that we don’t know that?”

She smirks and leans in to whisper to him. “I already pretend that I don’t know you let him play Black Ops while he’s here.”

Killian’s ears turn pink and he looks down at his feet.

“Dinner in an hour, kid!” she calls out to her son who yells back a confirmation that he heard her.

He watches as she walks out of his apartment and licks his lips at the sight of her rear end in the tight jeans she’s wearing. Emma makes all things difficult for him, she invades his every thought, her laugh haunts him in his dreams, and her body does things to him on a daily basis.

Killian wants nothing more than to take his time exploring every square inch of her and often visualizes it when he takes himself in hand, but he refuses to use her like that. There are parts of Emma he doesn’t know about yet, parts she still keeps hidden, like he does, and for the first time in years, he finds himself wanting to share all those parts with someone.

He just has to get up the courage to ask her.

“Hey, I have a favor to ask,” she whispers to him later after dinner.

They are doing the dishes while Henry does his homework at the dining room table in her flat.

“I do love when you ask for me favors, Swan,” he smirks and she rolls her eyes.

Emma wipes her hands on the dish towel and puts it down.

“Remember how I told you I ordered an end table last week from that store?”

“Aye,” Killian answers. “The one with creepy bloke.”

Emma nods. “Walsh. He called me today. Said my order would be ready next week.”

Killian’s eyebrow goes up. “Thought that wasn’t going to be ready for another month?”

“Well apparently it got done early. Anyway, could you maybe see if you can borrow the truck from the bar and come with me to pick it up? I’ll buy you a chocolate sundae!”

He laughs. “Chocolate is the way to your heart, love. Not mine.”

“I’m not paying for you to have sex, Jones.”

He barks out a laugh and shakes his head.

“I do love where your mind goes.” She smacks him in the arm. “I’ll call Larry tonight. I’m sure it won’t be a problem.”

They both look up when Henry gets up from the table and walks into the bathroom. Before Killian can grab the next dish, Emma stands up on her toes and leans into him.

She’s kissing him again and his heart is flying. His hand starts to shake before his mind yells at him to respond.

His eyes close and he pushes himself closer, but doesn’t move to deepen it, and neither does she. Their lips softly caress until they hear the sound of the sink in the bathroom being turned on. When they pull apart, Killian bites his lip while Emma looks down at her feet with a blush.

They share small smiles for the rest of the night.

* * *

Killian is walking into Emma’s apartment one afternoon when he hears Emma and Henry having a disagreement.

“Kid, I said no. Just drop it.”

Emma is standing in the kitchen while Henry sat at the island eating a sandwich. Henry turns to him and lifts his hand.

“Killian, will you please tell my mother she’s being silly.”

Killian walks up to the island and leans his left elbow on it. “You’re being silly.”

Emma puts her hands down and throws him a look. “Really?”

He chuckles and Emma shakes her head. “What seems to be the problem, lad?”

“The new girl she works with invited her to go out for drinks this weekend and she won’t go. Mom, you’re worse than an old lady, at least old ladies go out and have lives!”

“I have a life!” she cries out.

Killian and Henry both raise their eyebrows and her mouth drops open.

“I do! Just the other day I went to the movies,” she argues as she picks up her glass of water.

Henry snorts. “No, you rented a movie ‘On Demand’ and had a beer while Killian and I went to the batting cages.”

She rolls her eyes and takes a sip of her drink. “Same thing. Henry, I can’t go out. Who’s going to watch you? Killian has work all weekend so don’t even try it.”

“I can watch myself!” The boy turns to Killian. “Will you please tell her I can watch myself?”

Emma raises her eyebrow and Killian chuckles. “He is right, Swan. I think he can handle a night alone.”

Her lips press together before she turns back to the fridge to put something away. Before she can answer, Henry’s phone beeps and his face lights up.

“No, need! Avery says it’s okay for him to sleep over here Friday night and for me to sleep there Saturday. Besides, I already responded to Kate from your phone and told her you thought it was a great idea.”

Emma’s jaw drops and she looks over at Killian. He just holds his arms up and shrugs.

“He’s your boy, Swan.”

Henry jumps up from his seat and runs into his room talking quickly about how he has to pack. Emma just shakes her head and starts to clean up his lunch.

“Heading to the bar?”

Killian nods. “I just wanted to say goodbye. You still taking him to the arcade with his mates?”

She blushes and Killian has to bite his lip.

“Yeah, we’re going to be heading out in about an hour.” Emma wipes her hands on her pants and turns to him. “Keep me in your thoughts. I’m going to be in charge of four preteen boys!”

Killian laughs and takes a step forward. “It won’t be that bad, love. Just… be careful, aye?”

She gives him a slight nod and he looks down the hall to make sure Henry is still in his room. When the boy is nowhere to been seen, Killian takes a risk and puts his hand on her arm.

When she looks up, he leans forward and puts his lips on hers. Her quiet gasp makes him smile but she doesn’t pull away. Like their second kiss, this one is soft and slow. They take their time, and he pulls away far sooner than he wishes, too.

Emma looks up at him through her eyelashes and bites her lip to try and hide her smile.

“Have fun tonight,” he whispers.

She gives him another nod before he moves down the hall. When he looks back, he sees her standing in the kitchen with her hands to her lips and a small smile on her face and it makes his stomach flip for most of the night.

* * *

The rest of the week goes pleasantly well. When he’s not at the pub, he spends his time with Henry and Emma. Killian always loves spending time with them, there is just something about the two of them that makes him feel something he hasn’t felt since his brother passed. But now, there’s a little added bonus.

Stolen kisses between Emma and Killian become more frequent. The third time is after Killian took Henry to see the new super hero movie out as a gift for getting an A on his history exam.

“How was the movie?” Emma asks with a smile as they walk in.

“It was awesome!” Henry begins before he starts to describe in great detail the movie to his mother screen by screen.

Killian chuckles as he leans against the kitchen island and watches them.

Emma laughs and shakes her head when he’s finished.

“Well, it’s past your bed time kid, so why don’t you say thank you to Killian and get washed up.”

Henry runs up to him and gives him a hug in thanks before he rushes off to his bedroom.

He wants to stay and spend time with her, but when he sees her yawn he decides against it and she walks him to the door.

“Thanks for taking him to the movies, that was real sweet of you.”

Killian smiles at her. “Sweet is my middle name.”

Emma snorts and shakes her head. Before he can touch the door handle, she leans up and kisses him on the cheek. Killian licks his bottom lip and looks down the hall to make sure Henry isn’t there before he turns to her. His hand and prosthetic go to her waist and he backs her up against a wall.

“It’s late. You should go,” she says with a smile and very little meaning behind her words.

“In a minute,” he whispers.

His lips descend down to hers and he kisses her slowly. It’s soft and sweet and he hums as her fingers brush against his forearms. Just as her tongue pokes out to touch his bottom lip, they hear the bathroom door close. Killian pulls back and rests his forehead on her own. She bites her lip and looks up at him through her eyelashes.

“I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Emma nods and he gives her one last feather light kiss before he leaves.

The fourth time is when he decides to take her lunch on his day off. They sit at her desk talking and he tells her a story about some of the more colorful customers he runs into at the pub. When she laughs, she looks so beautiful, he can’t help himself. He kisses her hard against the lips and only pulls away when her desk phone rings.

Later that week, he gets an unexpected night off and finds himself standing in Emma’s kitchen as she washes her dishes.

“So I’m assuming pizza is on the menu tonight?” he asks with a grin.

Emma smiles. “They are preteen boys. Do you really think they will want to have a home cooked meal?”

Killian snorts and walks over to the kitchen island. “No, I suppose not.”

His eyebrows go together when he sees an orange plastic gun sitting there. “What’s this?”

Emma looks back over her shoulder and rolls her eyes. “It’s a water gun. Henry brought that home from the arcade the other night. I was going to throw it away.”

Killian picks up the toy. “Why? It’s just a water gun.”

“Yes, but it’ll still a gun. I blame you. If he wasn’t playing that game, he wouldn’t have wanted it.”

“Oh, come on, love. Water guns are a rite of passage. Everybody loves them. Don’t tell me you’ve never had a water gun fight.”

Her back goes stiff and Killian curses himself. Emma was an orphan and didn’t grow up with a family, so it was understandable that she never experienced something like that.

“Sorry,” he mumbles.

She shakes her head and whispers that it’s fine, but her back is still stiff. They stay silent for a few before Killian eyes the plastic gun in his hand and notices that it’s filled with water. A small smile forms on his face before he lifts the gun and pulls back the trigger.

The water rushes out like a laser and hits Emma directly in the back. She gasps and straightens up.

Killian has to bite his lip to keep from laughing out loud as she turns to him with a look of pure shock on her face.

“Did you just…”

She stops and jumps when Killian pulls the trigger again. The water hits her in the chin and drips down onto the floor. Emma’s eyes go wide and Killian loses his battle of trying to hide his laughter.

Killian is holding his stomach he’s laughing so hard when Emma reaches back into the sink. Her hand goes under the running water and swats it until it flies across to hit him on the arm.

His laughter stops and his face shines bright with amusement. They stand still for a couple seconds before they both move quickly. He starts to squirt her with the water gun while she continues to fling water at him from the sink.

Their laughter rings throughout the apartment as the entire kitchen and their clothes slowly become wet.

Too soon, the water gun is empty. Emma’s eyes glow and Killian holds up his arms.

“Swan…” he starts as he sees her hands move closer to the sink. “My weapon is empty…. It would be bad form to continue.”

Her eyebrows go up and her grin widens. “Bad form? Like shooting an unsuspecting person in the back?”

Killian struggles to explain while Emma nods at him. He sees her hands reach for the hose on the sink and his eyes go wide.

“Now, Emma, think about this. You don’t want to do that…”

She pulls the hose out slowly and Killian takes a step back.

“Why don’t I?” She asks with a sparkle in her eye.

Killian is finding it hard to stop smiling. He can’t remember ever seeing her so carefree, so happy… so utterly, and breathtakingly beautiful.

“Because…” he trails off and Emma raises her eyebrow.

He jumps forward to grab the hose just as she hits the nozzle. Water squirts out and shoots everywhere. They both laugh as they wrestle for control, water covering both them and the walls.

“Give it!” Killian laughs.

“Never!”

They sputter and step back when the water hits them in the face causing the hose to drop and the water to turn off. Killian leans back against the fridge while Emma leans back against the island. They both pant as their laughter dies down.

Killian looks up at Emma. Her hair and clothes are dripping with water, her cheeks are flush, and her eyes are brighter than he’s ever seen. The urge to kiss her is stronger than he’s ever felt before.

Emma looks at him and he can tell she feels it too. He doesn’t know who steps first, but they meet in the middle and their lips are on each other’s.

This kiss isn’t like the stolen kisses they’ve shared, it’s more like the first kiss. It’s fast and it’s passionate. Emma’s arms are wrapped tightly around his shoulders while Killian’s hand is in her hair and his left arm is wrapped around her waist.

Killian lets out a deep moan as she moves her hands up and yanks at his hair. Her lips are setting him on fire and his pants start to feel tight. They pull back to take a quick breath. He swallows but before he can say anything, Emma yanks him back down to her lips.

She moans when his tongue enters her mouth and it takes everything in him not to rip her clothes off right there. He starts to move them back; he wants to lift her up onto the island. He wants to feel her legs wrap around him.

But he forgets that the floor is wet and when they move, Emma’s foot slips. The hands in his hair disappear as they quickly grip his shoulders. His left arm tightens around her waist and his right arm reaches out to grab the island so that she doesn’t pull them both down.

They stand there panting, Emma on an angle, her feet in between his legs, and Killian holding them up by his grip on the island.

“You okay?” he pants out.

Emma nods quickly but keeps her hold on his shoulders. The sound of the apartment door opening causes them both to move. Killian pulls her up so she’s standing straight and doesn’t let go until he knows she is stable.

She quickly straightens her clothes and runs her hands through her hair as Henry and his friend walk down the hall.

“Hey mom, Killian, we’re…” Henry stops when he looks around the kitchen. “What are you guys doing?”

Emma opens her mouth and Killian reaches up to scratch the back of his ear.

“Ugh,” she trails off.

The boys look at the water all over the ground then at their wet clothes. Both of their eyes go wide before Henry puts his hands on his hips.

“Did you two have a water fight?”

Killian and Emma exchange a look before they turn back to the boys.

Henry shakes his head. “You two better clean that up. You’re not supposed to have water fights in the house!”

Emma puts her head down and Killian clears his throat.

“Sorry, lad.”

“We’ll clean it up.”

Henry gives them a pointed glare before he and his friend move to his bedroom. They both exchange a chuckle and move to start the cleanup.

“Um, I got this, if you want to go get changed,” she says softly.

His brows go together. “This is partly my mess, Swan. I’m not going to leave you to it.”

Emma lets out a breath and shakes her head. “Killian, please go get changed.”

Her eyes refuse to meet his and he starts to feel anger course through him. He knows that they’ve never talked about what’s been happening, but this is the first time she’s ever tried to push him away after one.

“What’s the…”

“Your pants are _very_ wet,” she hisses in a whisper.

When she finally looks up at him there is a blush on her cheeks. He looks down and it’s his turn to blush. His pants are soaked and the outline of his hardness is clearly visible.

Killian clears his throat. “Right.”

Her cheeks burn brighter as she grabs a towel. Killian stops her and she looks up at him through her eyelashes.

“I’ll be right back,” he whispers.

Emma stares at him for a second before she leans up and places a soft kiss on his lips. He smiles as they pull back and he rushes down the hall to his apartment.

The tightness doesn’t go away and when his apartment door slams shut, he rips his pants open.

Killian lets out a groan as he takes his aching cock in his hand and starts to pump. He throws his head back and he pictures Emma. The way her gray t-shirt was clinging to her body, the way her nipples were hard and visible. He thinks about their kiss, how her lips felt on his and how her hands felt in his hair.

The little sounds she makes whenever they kiss drive him wild, he can only dream about the sounds she would make if they were ever to come together.

His left arm moves up and he has to bite down to muffle his moan as he explodes into his hand. His body trembles and he sinks down onto the floor when his legs go weak.

Killian sits there panting with his head back against the door.

Emma Swan is going to be his undoing, but he’s damn sure he doesn’t care.


	7. Chapter Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double line breaks mean change of POV

After their little water fight, and after his ‘alone’ time, Killian goes back to the apartment and spends the rest of the night with Emma, Henry and his friend. They play board games, eat pizza and watch movies. Around eleven thirty, Emma’s eyes start to droop and Killian offers to stay up with them so she can go to sleep. She protests, but when her head slips from her hand, he insists.

He lets the boys stay up until a little after two and he can’t help the smile on his face when he hears Henry’s friend say, _“Your mom’s boyfriend is pretty cool.”_

Killian lays in bed thinking about Emma and what happened earlier in the night in her kitchen. They were passionate and heated, and he was pretty sure if they hadn’t slipped, it would have gone further.

He needs to talk to her.

When he wakes the next morning, she invites him over for breakfast, but the two boys are there so he decides to wait until later. He tries to stop by before work, but she’s rushing to get Henry and his friend ready and they have no time. After that, he tells himself he’ll text her when he gets to work to ask if they can get together in the morning before Henry gets home, but when he gets there, he gets side tracked and doesn’t get a free moment until three hours later. The first thing he does is go for his phone, but he sees a message waiting for him already.

**Hope you like the color red – E**

Killian’s brow goes together in confusion and before he can type his response, he hears her voice.

“Hey, sailor! What does a girl have to do to get a drink around here?”

His head snaps up and his eyes go wide. Emma stands in front of the bar with her elbows bent and a smile on her face. Her hair is down in waves and she’s wearing a sleeveless, very tight, red dress that does wonders to show off her curves. His jaw drops and his mouth starts to water as he stares at her.

“Hey there, sweetie,” Some moron says as he walks up to her. “I can buy you a drink.”

Killian growls and takes a step forward. “Back off, mate.”

The guy looks at Killian then back at Emma before he puts his hands up and walks away. Emma laughs and leans over the bar.

“I can take care of myself, you know?”

He smiles at her. A sudden vision of the last time Emma had to ‘take care of herself’ flashes through his mind. She stopped by one day after work to say hello to him but he was in the back. There was a guy who had a few too many beers and tried to hit on her. He wouldn’t take no for an answer and when he tried to touch her, Emma took action.

Barry came running into the back to tell Killian they had a situation, and when he walked out into the bar, he saw the man on his knees cringing in pain while Emma had his arm twisted behind him. The guy tried yelling about harassment and Killian took much pleasure in shoving his sorry ass out the door with a little more force than necessary.

“Aye, but I never could stop myself from helping a lady in need. Thought you were supposed to go out with the lass from work?”

Emma motions behind her. “I am. If I’m being forced to play nice, I figured why not come where I know there’s someone that only annoys me half the time.”

Her face shows amusement and Killian lifts his hand to wipe fake tears.

“Swan, you are so poetic.”

They both laugh and look up when his name is called. His stomach drops when he’s sees April. The last time he saw her, they were flirting pretty heavily and she offered to take him back to her room, but he had to work the next morning, so he asked for a reign check for the next time she was in town. The next day, he met Emma and Henry and hasn’t thought about her since.

“Looks like your fans are calling you,” she mumbles with what almost sounds like bitterness.

He shakes his head. “What can I get you?”

She gives him a shy smile and her order. He moves behind the bar and quickly fills her order. When April tries to call him a second time he ignores her again before he turns back to Emma. Things are just starting to change between them and he in no way wants someone he had an ‘almost’ with to mess it up.

“Have fun tonight, love.”

“Keep your eyes out for my emergency signal,” she whispers to him as she grabs the drinks.

Killian snorts and nods. “As you wish.”

He watches her walk away and can’t help but rake his eyes over her entire body. The same body that was pressed up against him just the night before.

“Oh, and Swan!” He calls out.

Emma turns back to him with and raises an eyebrow.

“I absolutely love the color red.”

Her cheeks tint and she bites her lip before she walks back to the crowd.

* * *

* * *

Emma finds herself having a good time with Kate. She’s a nice girl who is just looking to make some friends. She never asks anything too personal and keeps the conversation strictly to main stream topics.

“So, ugh,” Kate stutters. “What can you tell me about Colin?”

Emma takes a sip of her drink and her eyes go wide.

“Colin?” The girl’s cheeks tint and she nods. “Do you have a crush on Colin?”

Her cheeks go even redder. “Well, he is kind of cute, don’t you think?”

She shakes her head and laughs. “Yeah, I mean, he’s not bad looking.”

Kate keeps her eyes on her drink and her lips press together. Emma leans over and knocks her with her shoulder.

“You know, Roger isn’t against dating, he just asks that you keep the personal stuff out of the office.”

She smiles and tucks a piece of her brown hair behind her ear. “We’ve been texting… he seems like a nice guy.”

“You should go for it. As far as I know he’s single.”

Kate puts her hands in her lap and her shoulders hunch together. “What if he says no?”

Emma puts her hand on the girl’s arm. “I doubt it. I’ve seen the way you guys are at the office. I think he likes you, too.”

Kate blushes. “He did ask if he could come out with us tonight, but I didn’t want you to feel weird or anything…”

“Invite him! I’ll gladly play the buffer until you’re comfortable enough then high tail it out of here.”

Kate’s face drops. “That’s not what I want, Emma. I would like for us to be friends.”

Emma smiles at her, Kate is a nice girl and she does get along with her, but friends aren’t really her thing. She doesn’t need to know that, though.

“We are! And friends help each other out with these things. Now, call Colin, tell him to meet us for drinks and after he gets here, I’ll go to the bar and you guys can talk.”

The girl’s eyes move over to the bar then back to Emma’s. “So you can go talk to the bartender?”

It’s Emma’s turn to blush. “That’s Killian, he’s my neighbor.”

Kate blinks. “He’s not your boyfriend?”

Emma’s eyes go wide and she shakes her head. “Ugh, no.”

“Oh! I’m sorry, I just saw you two kissing the other day and I…”

She starts to squirm in her seat. When she first kissed him, it was without thought and based on pure carnal instinct. When she woke the next morning in his arms, she had a panic attack. She hasn’t _slept_ with a man since Neal and it freaked her out. She thanked the gods when he had to leave for work because all she wanted to do was run.

She planned on avoiding him, it would be easy, but then she thought of Henry. It’s clear her son cares for their neighbor and she didn’t want to mess that up for him, more than she already has, so she told herself she would just forget it, act like it never happened.

Then she went and did something stupid like kiss him again. She couldn’t help it, his willingness to help her without question, to be there, it got to her and she just _had_ to kiss him.

Again, she told herself she would just let it go, then he kissed her and ever since it’s like a normal occurrence between them.

But other than that, nothing has really changed.

Yes, her and Killian have been sharing a lot of kisses, but what that means is not clear. Are they friends that kissed sometimes, or are they something more?

Emma knows she won’t have the answers to those questions until her and Killian finally talk.

“It’s um,” Emma clears her throat and sits up. “It’s complicated.”

She tilts her head and looks at Emma. They stare at each other silently before Kate smiles.

“I’m going to text Colin; will you mind getting us another round?”

Emma agrees and heads to the bar. She doesn’t know why the look Kate gave bothers her. It isn’t the first time someone thought that Killian is her boyfriend. Hell, they both use it to their advantage all the time when trying to get stragglers away, but ever since they started sharing kisses, the thought of him as her boyfriend warms her all over.

The best part is that they already know each other, so that first ‘getting to know each other’ stage would be completely skipped and they could just get into the better things.

Her body shivers as she thinks about what those ‘better things’ could be. It’s been too long since she had a good tumble with someone and something tells her Killian knows exactly what to do with a girl. Judging by the way he kisses it’s only natural she has thought about what other parts of his body can do to her…

“Lost, love?”

She blinks out of her thoughts and looks up to see Killian looking at her from behind the bar. His eyebrow is up and her cheeks blush because she didn’t even realize she was at the bar until he spoke.

“Ugh, yeah, can I get another round and can you add a third drink to that?”

His face drops. “Planning on inviting someone else to your little get together?”

“Kate is texting Colin to join us.”

Killian’s lips go into a thin line before he turns to get the drinks. She’s not sure why she feels guilty, but it’s the reason she talks quickly when he returns.

“Kate has a crush on him,” she blurts out. “They’ve been flirting at work and apparently have been texting back and forth. I’ll be the buffer until they are comfortable enough.”

She watches as he lets out a sigh, shakes his head and looks back up at her. “So you figure you’ll play match maker and deliver a happy ending?”

Emma holds up her hands, crosses her fingers and makes a very sarcastic wishful look. “Here’s hoping!”

Killian lets out a full belly laugh before she grabs the drinks and moves to head back to the table. She bumps into a girl as she turns.

“Oh, shit, sorry!” she mumbles.

The red head gives her a tight smile and a nod before she pushes past her to the bar. Emma takes a step forward but stops when she hears the girl call Killian’s name. It’s then she realizes it’s the same girl that called out to him when she first got there.

Emma tries to ignore the feeling of jealousy that courses through her and walks back to her table. Kate tells her excitedly that Colin is on her way and she acts happy. But her eyes keep moving back to the bar where Killian is having a conversation with the red head.

When Colin shows, she stands to give him a hug and does a little mental happy dance when she sees from the corner of her eye Killian stare at them with a glare.

It’s not that she wants to make him jealous on purpose, but it’s nice to know that maybe her feelings aren’t so one sided.

The three of them sit at the table and sip on their drinks as they talk. She smiles at the way Colin listens to every word Kate has to say. Obviously the affection Kate has for her coworker is shared. She tries to keep up with the conversation, even throws in a few comments of her own, but when she sees the red head walk back up to the bar, her entire body goes stiff.

It’s not like she hasn’t seen women flirt with Killian before. He is all types of good looking and works at a bar, that’s just a perfect recipe for single women. But there is something about this one, it’s almost like she knows Killian on a different level, they seem… personable.

Emma’s palms twitch as she watches Killian lean in to hear what the red head says and laughs. He has spent a lot more time with her than any other patron and it’s making her angry.

She knows she has no right to feel angry, she has no claim over Killian, they’ve only kissed a couple of times, they are just friends. But there is just something about him that makes her feel almost possessive and makes her feel like he’s _hers_.

“Hey, Emma,” she looks back over at Colin. “Are you okay?”

Emma forces a smile and nods. “I am. Are you having fun?”

Colin gives her a smile. “I am. Kate seems nice.”

It’s then Emma realizes she was so distracted with looking at Killian that she didn’t notice Kate was no longer at the table. Colin smiles at her and motions with his head.

“She went to the bathroom.”

“Oh,” Emma says softly with a light chuckle.

Colin lifts his drink up and takes a sip. “I didn’t know Killian worked here.”

Emma nods and looks down at her hands. “Ugh, yeah.”

“How are things with you two?”

She almost spits out her drink. “What do you mean?”

Colin’s eyebrows go together. He looks at the bar then back at her.

“You guys are together, aren’t you?”

Before she can answer, Kate comes back to the table. She’s talking fast about the wait in line and Emma wonders how long she was staring at the bar before Colin interrupted her.

Emma looks to see Colin and Kate talking and gives them a small smile.

“You know what,” she says as she stands. “I’m going to see how Killian is doing behind the bar.”

They both try to hide their excitement and Emma has to hold back her laughter.

“You guys okay with being left alone for a while?”

She almost snorts at their big grins and walks off. Emma walks to the bar with a smile on her face. Her plan is to leave after they get comfortable, but the thought of spending the night with Killian seems better than going home to an empty apartment.

And maybe if she stays, there will be a repeat of the first night they had drinks with a different outcome.

Emma can feel her cheeks blush as she walks up to the bar. She stops when she sees the red head standing there talking to Killian again. She takes a step closer and her heart drops at what she hears.

“I’m looking to cash in on that rain check you owe me. What do you say? Want to come back to my room after your shift?”

Rain check.

Killian owes this woman a rain check.

Her heart pounds in her chest and she feels like the world is crashing around her. Everything she has feared since the moment she has met Killian is right before her.

He’s not hers, he never was hers, and he owes a ‘rain check’ to a beautiful red head that frequents his bar.

Emma feels sick to her stomach. She should have known that just because they kiss on occasion doesn’t change anything.

Killian doesn’t date, he told her that when they first met.

She has to leave… she has to get out of there, because she knows that if she has to listen to Killian’s response, it’ll end her.

But before she can move, someone bumps into her and she stumbles into the bar right next to the red head.

“Swan, are you alright?”

Emma pushes herself up and her cheeks turn red.

“I’m fine,” she mumbles. “Someone just bumped into me.”

He reaches over the bar to help her but she yanks her arm away. Without even looking, she knows the hurt is written all over his face. But she can’t worry about that, she has to worry about herself.

So she brushes her hair away from her face and stands up fully.

“I’m leaving.”

She can feel him staring at her but she refuses to look at him. The red head next to her lets out a sigh and Emma throws a glare her way.

When she sees him move from the corner of her eye she finally looks up. Killian’s brow is together and her face is hard. His eyes move from Emma to the red head then back to her. They widen slightly and Emma knows then he realizes she heard everything.

Killian opens his mouth but Emma cuts him off.

“I’ll talk to you later, Killian.”

Before he gets a chance to stop her, Emma pushes her way through the crowd and ignores him calling her name.

Stupid, she feels completely and utterly stupid. She knew who he was… is… he’s told her. But she let herself believe that they were different, that she was different.

It’s her own fault, she let her guard down. There are reasons she has her walls; it isn’t just her she has to worry about. Especially with how close Henry and Killian are, she was stupid to think they could try to be anything more than what they are.

Neighbors… friends… and that’s where it ends.

It has too.

“Hey guys, I’m just going to head out.” She says quickly.

They both look up at her in shock. Emma hears her name again and she has to keep her face blank as they both look behind her to probably see Killian trying to get through the crowd.

“Are you sure, Em?” Colin asks.

She grabs her jacket and gives them a forced smile before she says goodbye and pushes herself out of the bar.

The cold air sends a chill down her spine as she feels tears prick at her eyes. Emma lets out a deep sigh. All she wants is to go home and get into bed. She knew she should have never gone out.

“Swan.”

Emma jumps at the sound of his voice and turns back to the door. Her brows go together as she looks back at the street before she turns back to him.

“Shouldn’t you be inside?”

He runs his hand through his hair and looks up at her.

“I just wanted to explain…”

Emma shakes her head and puts her jacket on over her shoulders. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Love…”

“Seriously,” she says with a huff. “I’m just tryingꟷ”

“Emma!”

She stops and looks up at him. In the entire time that she’s known him, he’s called her by her first name only a handful of times. Their eyes connect and she’s surprised to find his full of what looks like regret and sorrow.

Emma takes a deep breath. “You don’t have to explain anything.”

“Aye, I do.”

Her throat tightens and she shakes her head again. “No you don’t. I mean… it’s not like we…”

When she looks back up at him, he almost seems hopeful, but then she remembers the red head from inside of the bar.

Rain check.

He owes her a ‘rain check’.

Emma’s lips go together in a hard line and she shrugs. “We’re friends.”

She tries to ignore how his face drops at her words and she looks down at the ground. Part of her wants him to deny what she’s just said, that he would argue with her and say they weren’t just friends.

“That we are…” he whispers and her heart breaks.

Emma blinks away her tears and forces a smile. “Have a nice night, Killian.”

She turns and walks away before she can hear his response. The walk back to her apartment is quick and once her door closes she finally lets her tears fall. The last man she cried over was Neal, and she swore to herself that she would never cry over a man again.

But Killian Jones is unlike any man she has ever met. From the moment they first spoke, she felt an instant connection to him, almost like they’ve known each other for years, and she tried to fight against it. She really did, but there is just something about him that makes every thought process, every wall she’s built around herself, start to shake when he’s around. It’s why she kissed him the first time, and why she continued to kiss him after that, she let her guard down, thinking it was okay.

Now Killian is probably going to leave work with the red head and it makes her sick to her stomach.

If she just got over her fear and told him how she felt, things might have been different. They might be together, and he wouldn’t be sleeping with that skanky red head.

Emma wipes her face and goes to change out of her dress. The dress she wore specifically for Killian, that now seemed like a complete waste of time. When she slips into bed and closes her eyes, she tries not to picture Killian and the redhead together.

She fails and falls into a fitful sleep.

Her eyes shoot open when hears the banging at her front door.

“What the…” she whispers to herself and looks at her clock.

2:17 A.M.

A quick wave of panic starts to run through her when she remembers Henry is at his friends. Emma climbs out of her bed and runs down the hall. When she yanks the door open, her jaw drops.

Killian is standing there, his jacket thrown over his arm, and a big smile on his face. Before she can say anything, he takes a step forward, wraps his arm around her, and slams his lips against her own.

Emma lets out a surprised squeal before she quickly catches on. The kiss is far too short, but it awakens her entire body. When they pull back, Killian rests his forehead against her own and lets out a soft chuckle.

“You forgot this at the pub,” he whispers and Emma feels him place something in her hand.

She looks down to see her credit card. After the fog lifts, Emma’s mind finally registers what is happening.

Killian is at her apartment door after his shift, he’s just kissed her, and returned her forgotten credit card. He’s not at the red head’s apartment, he’s with her.

Her eyes shoot up to his with question. He just smiles and leans in to place a soft kiss on her forehead.

“Goodnight, Swan.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick A/N: Next Chapter... hehehehe :D


	8. Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is… one of the things we’ve all been waiting for :D Let me know how you feel!! Also, double line breaks means change of POV

“The Wizard of Oak,” Killian reads after he steps out of the truck. Emma walks up to stand next to him. “What kind of name is that?”

Emma laughs and puts the strap of her purse over her shoulder. “They make custom furniture and come highly rated.”

He presses his lips together as they walk into the store. He looks around at the furniture on display and leans down to look at the price tag on a rocking chair.

“Bloody hell, Swan,” he hisses. “This chair costs more than my rent!”

Emma tries not laugh. “Shhh!”

“Who needs a chair that costs that much? Highway robbery is what it is!”

She laughs out loudly which causes the sales clerk to look at them. They both give her a small smile before Emma turns to him.

“I’m going to talk to this nice lady. Will you keep yourself out of trouble for five minutes?”

“As you wish.”

She rolls her eyes and walks off.

Things went back to normal between the two of them after what happened at the pub over the weekend, and though they haven’t shared any stolen kisses since, he’s not worried.

Killian never intended for her to hear what April had to say, and when he realized she did, it made him want to vomit. The only woman he wants is Emma, that’s why he chased her outside. He wanted to tell her that, but then she threw out the line of them being friends and he felt as if his heart was ripped from his chest.

The rest of the night went by in the blur, he wanted to chase after her again, but he knew he couldn’t leave. The worst was that he knew the longer she had time alone with her thoughts, the worse it would be. When he found her card behind the bar, it was like a gift from the heavens. It didn’t matter how late the time was, it gave him an excuse to show her without having to say the words that he didn’t want April. That he turned down her offer and was home.

He also made it very clear to April that she would never get her rain check, and when she asked if Emma was his girlfriend, he didn’t hesitate with telling her yes.

Killian walks around the store looking over the pieces of furniture until he sees something that catches his eye. His head tilts as he spots a bed frame with a ships wheel. His fingers ghost over the carving and he feels a pull for something he can’t quite understand. It’s almost like he can feel the sway of the current under his feet and the spray of the ocean on his face.

“That’s pretty,” Emma whispers as she walks up to him.

“Aye.”

Killian’s brow goes together. The ship wheel is calling to him; it seems… familiar. But he can’t understand why.

“You okay?”

Before he can answer, a voice calls out from behind them.

“Miss Swan?”

Emma and Killian look up to see a man walking to them with a floppy brown hair and a big smile on his face.

“I’m so glad you’re here.”

“Walsh, hi. I got the call my end table was ready?”

The man, Walsh, smiles at her before his eyes move to Killian’s. Walsh freezes and his jaw drops when he looks at him.

“Hook?” he breathes out in shock.

Killian’s eyebrows go up to his hairline as Emma’s brow goes together.

“Sorry?” Killian asks.

Walsh’s face goes hard. “What the hell are you doing here?”

Killian’s hand goes into a fist and takes a step forward. “Excuse me?”

Emma puts her hands up and steps in between them.

“Do you two know each other?”

“I’ve never seen this man before in my life,” Killian hisses.

Walsh seems to snap out of it and shakes his head.

“No,” he stammers out. “Sorry. I thought you were someone else. My mistake.”

He turns back to Emma and throws her another smile which causes Killian’s jaw to clench.

“Emma, I just need you to sign a few things, then you can take your piece home.”

She turns back to Killian and puts her hand on his arm. “I’ll be right back, okay?”

He gives her a tight lip smile before she walks off. Killian keeps them in his sight and inches closer. The way Walsh walked up to him gave him a bad feeling and he wanted nothing more to punch him in the face. That feeling only increases as he listens to their conversation.

“I’m sorry about that, Emma. It was completely my fault. He just looked like someone that I knew.”

“Yes, well, if I could just sign the papers, that would be great.” Walsh chuckles and hands her a pen. “Is my end table in the truck outside?”

“Yes.”

“Good.”

They are both silent as she signs before he takes a step closer to her.

“I was actually wondering if maybe I could take you out to eat sometime.”

Killian’s nostrils flair and suddenly he can hear Henry’s voice in his head.

_“Then ask her out before someone else does.”_

His entire body goes stiff. It isn’t like he hasn’t seen guys hit on her before, since her first night in his pub, she has made it a point to stop in whenever Henry sleeps out and she gets hit on all the time. But this is different. This isn’t some drunk guy trying to get a piece of tail. This is a man that wants to take her out on an actual date. Which means he wants to get to know her.

Killian’s heart pounds in his chest and he looks down at his feet.

“Are you serious?” Emma snorts. “First, you walk up and are completely rude to my boyfriend, now you’re asking me out on a date? What the hell kind of business are you running here?”

He sucks in a breath. It isn’t the first time she’s called him her boyfriend. It’s actually turned into a game between them, unlike the first time he did it to help her, it doesn’t bring pain anymore, it’s normal.

Even if it isn’t true.

Walsh opens his mouth but Emma cuts him off.

“No, you know what. Forget it. If I hadn’t already paid for my end table, I would be refusing to buy it. Just give me what I came for and never speak to me again.”

Emma storms back over to him.

“Killian, let’s go.”

“Emma, please…”

Walsh tries to approach her and Killian takes a step forward.

“Watch it,” he growls.

The man holds his hands up. Emma and Killian don’t spare him another glance when they walk out. Their ride back is filled with growls and rants. Though it makes him happy that she was angered about Walsh asking her out, he still can’t seem to shake the bad feeling that is coursing through him. He stays silent as he grabs the table from the back of the truck. She insists on helping him carrying it up but he refuses. The entire time, all he can picture in his mind is Emma with someone else. If he hadn’t gone with her to pick up the table, would she have accepted his request for a date?

That thought alone eats at his very core.

“Are you sure you got this?” Emma asks as they walk down the hall toward her apartment.

Killian breaks himself out his thoughts and snorts. “I’ve got one hand, love. Not one arm.”

She rolls her eyes and opens the door for him. “If you could just put it down…”

“I know, Swan.”

Visions of her and Walsh swim around his head as he places the table down.

“It looks good there, right? I think it looks good there… or maybe I should put it on the other side. I’ll wait for Henry to see what he….”

“Have dinner with me.”

Emma’s brows go together as she turns to look at the clock that hangs on her wall.

“Now? It’s barely after lunch,” she says with a chuckle. “Don’t tell me you’re hungry again.”

“No,” he shakes his head. “That’s not what I meant.”

“Oh. You mean later?” She walks over to her kitchen and opens her fridge. He holds back his groan of frustration and wipes his lips. “Sure, you want to order out or I can cook. Henry should be home around threeꟷ”

“Go on a date with me.”

Killian watches as her back goes stiff before she turns to face him. Her face shows surprise.

“What?” she asks in a whisper.

His heart pounds in his chest and his body shakes. He can’t remember the last time he has ever been so nervous in his entire life. Even with Milah, she never made him nervous. But Emma Swan is a different creature.

Killian takes a step forward and he reaches up to scratch the back of his ear. “Will you go out on a date with me?”

He knows he’s changing things. The first week they met, they both made it very clear that they don’t date.

Made things easier.

Sure, they flirt on a daily basis, and refer to each other as boyfriend/girlfriend to strangers, even share some kisses, but the flirting is harmless, the other is only so people will back off and not hit on them, and the last is…. Well that’s just a bonus.

But he can’t help it, he wants Emma more than he’s ever wanted anything in his entire life, and he is willing to risk it all on the slight chance that she…

“Yes.”

Killian’s mouth falls open and Emma bites her lip to hide her smile.

“Really?”

She giggles and pushes a piece of hair behind her ear as she nods. His smile starts to hurt his cheeks.

“Right,” he chuckles out as he wipes his sweaty palm on his pants. “Um, tonight?”

Emma starts to nod before her face drops and Killian feels like he’s been kicked in the stomach.

“I don’t know if I can find someone to look out for Henry on such short notice.”

He runs his hand through his hair and comes up with a plan. “Why don’t you let me worry about the lad?”

She crosses her arms and tries to hide her smile.

“You want me to let you worry about who’s going to look after my son?” He nods and she laughs. “Okay, then.”

He grins and moves toward the door. “Eight o’clock good for you?”

“Yeah, that’s great.”

Killian steps forward and takes her hand in his. Emma’s mouth falls open as he lifts it to his lips and softly kisses it.

“I’ll see you tonight.”

* * *

* * *

Emma doesn’t realize that she’s stopped breathing until her apartment door closes. Her head feels dizzy and she has to actually talk herself out of pinching herself to make sure she isn’t dreaming.

Killian just asked her out on a date. An actual date.

Her heart starts to race in her chest and she has to force herself to calm down. She’s been on dates before, it isn’t like this was her first… but it is her first with Killian.

Emma’s left arm shoots up and she looks at her watch.

1:16 P.M.

She has seven hours. Seven _fucking_ hours.

She lets out a groan and leans down to put her head on the kitchen counter. Kilian Jones is most definitely trying to kill her.

Emma spends the rest of her day trying to keep herself busy. She cleans the entire apartment from top to bottom and absolutely refuses to pick an outfit out until she’s getting ready, because she knows if she picks her outfit out with hours to spare, she will just end up ripping her closet apart second guessing everything in it.

When three o’clock rolls around, her nails are tapping against the wood on her dining room table as she waits for Henry to arrive. She knows that once he’s home, she’ll be able to distract herself until it’s time to get ready.

The apartment door opens and Emma practically jumps out of her seat. Her smile is in full force when she rounds the table to get to the hall, but it quickly fades when Henry jogs down the hallway and throws his backpack at her.

“Hi, mom. Bye mom!”

“Hey, kid!” She calls out but Henry doesn’t stop.

Before he can run back out the door she calls out to him again.

“Henry! Stop!”

Her son turns around and looks at her like she’s interrupting something very important.

“Where’s the fire?”

“Killian texted me and asked me to come over right away, I have to go!”

Her mouth drops open and Henry is gone before she can say another word. Her lips pout and for a second, she’s a little pissed off at Killian. First, he gives her a seven-hour window to wait until their date, then he takes her son so that she can’t distract herself for the remaining five hours.

He is definitely trying to kill her.

* * *

Emma walks out of her bedroom when she hears the apartment door open and close.

“Mom?”

“Kid, where have you been?”

“I’m sorry, Killian and I were just…”

When Henry rounds the corner he stops and his mouth drops open. Emma watches as he looks her over with a smile.

“Wow, mom. You look so pretty.”

She lets out a soft chuckle before she looks down at the dress she chose. It has knit tank straps with a square neck line, scoop back, a flare style full circle skirt and it’s red.

“Do you think Killian will like it?”

A wide smile spreads across her sons face. “Definitely.”

Emma lets out a breath of relief and walks over to put her arm around Henry.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?”

Henry looks up at her like she’s crazy.

“Are you kidding me? Who do you think was the one that told him he needed to step up and ask you out?”

“Seriously?”

Henry gives her a smirk. “Now you guys don’t have to sneak kisses when you think I’m not in the room.”

Emma’s jaw drops and she looks at her son in shock. He chuckles and pulls her in for a hug.

“I want you to be happy, mom, and Killian is the first person that we have ever met that does that. I see the way you two are around each other. You laugh all the time.”

Emma closes her eyes and puts her nose in her son’s hair. They stand there in silence for a couple seconds before Henry pulls back and smiles up at her.

“Killian is a good guy. I like having him around.”

Her brow goes together and fear starts to slowly creep up her spine.

“Henry… maybe this isn’t a good idea. What if it doesn’t work out… I don’t want things to be weird for you. I know how much you like him. I’d hate for you to lose your friend…”

He shakes his head and takes her hands in his.

“Mom, stop worrying. I already had this conversation with Killian…”

Emma’s mouth falls open again and Henry nods.

“He said the same thing and told me that no matter what, he would still be in my life. And I’m going to tell you the same thing I told him.”

“Yeah, what’s that?”

“I’m not worried, something tells me we’re all going to be together for a very long time.”

Tears prick her eyes and she has to take a deep breath so she doesn’t ruin her makeup. Her stomach does a flip when there is a knock at the front door.

“He’s here. Okay, wait! What about you?”

Henry smiles. “I’ll be here; Killian asked Mrs. Cuse to listen out for me.”

She tries to argue against him being alone when he gives her a smile, almost like there’s a joke she doesn’t know about, before he pushes her to the door. Her hands shake as she reaches for the handle and when the door opens, her mouth drops open.

Killian stands out in the hall looking like sex on legs. He’s wearing dress shoes, black slacks, a dark gray button up and a black blazer. She can’t help but run her eyes up and down him as she tries to come up with something to say.

“You look stunning, Swan.”

His voice breaks her out of her stare and she shakes her head slightly.

“You look…”

He holds out a single red rose to her and gives a smirk. “I know.”

The tension in her body melts at his cockiness and she can’t help but roll her eyes with a smile. Emma takes the rose from his hand and twirls it around in her fingers. She opens her mouth but stops when she sees Killian looking over her shoulder with an amused smile on his face.

Emma turns and has to bite her lip to keep from giggling when she sees Henry standing there with his arms crossed and a stern look on his face.

“I expect you to have her home at a reasonable hour.”

Both Emma and Killian chuckle and Henry raises his eyebrow. Killian clears his throat and stands up straight.

“Of course, lad,” he says with a nod. “I can assure you, your mother couldn’t be in better hands.”

“Mhm, she better.”

Emma rolls her eyes and turns to give Henry a kiss on the cheek.

“Be good, okay, kid?”

Henry gives her a nod before he pulls her in for another hug. She smiles when he whispers in her ear to have fun and gives him a light kiss on the cheek. Henry grumbles as she wipes her lipstick away with her thumb before he gives her another little shove. Her feet stumble but Killian’s hand on her elbow keeps her from falling.

When the door to the apartment closes and they are left alone in the hall, she feels her cheeks tint and she has a hard time keeping the smile off of her face.

“Ready, love?”

Her eyelashes flutter as she nods. She wants to speak but she can’t seem to find her voice. It’s not until Emma feels his hand on the small of her back that they begin to walk down the hall. She tries to hide the shiver that his fingers cause and concentrates on walking.

“Thank you,” when he looks at her confused she motions back to the apartment. “For making sure Henry is taken care of tonight. Was Mrs. Cuse upset?”

Killian hits the button on the elevator and her brows go together when she sees he’s hit the up button instead of the down. He gives her a smirk.

“She was fine with it. I told her we would be close if there was an emergency.”

They step onto the elevator and she turns to him when he hits the button for the top floor.

“Okay, where are you taking me?”

Killian chuckles and shakes his head. “Do you ever let anyone surprise you, Swan?”

She presses her lips together and stares at the doors with a hint of a smile on her face. The last time she was on a date was when Henry was eight and the guy surprised her by taking her to monster trucks. It wasn’t that she didn’t enjoy it, it’s just when she mentioned that her son would have loved it, the guy got distant and when he dropped her off, she never heard from him again.

It wasn’t a heart break by any means, it was more of a way to pass the time and see if dating was for her.

It wasn’t.

Until she met Killian Jones.

The elevator dings and Killian takes her hand and leads her to the stairwell. When he tries to pull her through the doors she stops.

“Where are you taking me?”

“It’s just up here…”

He tries to pull her hand and she pulls back.

“Killian, we haven’t even left the building. You’re not taking me somewhere to murder me and hide my body are you?”

He lets out a full belly laugh and takes a step closer to her. She holds back a gasp as he moves his face inches from hers and feels his breath on her lips.

“Trust me?”

Emma looks back and forth between his eyes and nods before she even realizes it. Killian’s face breaks out in a huge grin before he tugs her back to the steps and she giggles at his cocky expression as they climb the steps. Killian opens a heavy door and Emma can’t help her gasp.

The roof deck of their apartment complex is illuminated by hanging lights that are strung across antenna’s, there’s a table with a red and white checkered cloth over top of it, with two plates filled with food on top and a lit candle in the middle.

Her mouth opens and closes as he pulls her onto the deck with a smile. She’s still looking around in awe as he leans down to prop the door open. When she quirks her eyebrows at him, the tips of his ears turn pink.

“Ugh, the door locks from the inside when closed all the way. And please don’t ask me how I know that. It most certainly wasn’t because I closed it on meself and had to call your boy to come rescue me,” he explains as he leads her toward the table.

She shakes her head and sits when he pulls the chair out for her.

“Killian this is…”

“I knew you wouldn’t want to be far from Henry and I figured this way we could be close but still be alone.”

He hangs his jacket on the back of his chair before he sits down and smiles. He really did think of everything. She wants to ask him how he’s managed to get them food and keep it warm, but she bites her tongue. Killian has obviously gone out of his way to make sure that everything is perfect and she doesn’t want to ruin anything because she’s curious.

“You do look beautiful, Emma. Red is a very dashing color on you.”

“Well, you did mention that you liked the color,” she mumbles.

“Right you are, love.”

Emma brushes her hair behind her shoulders as Killian pours them each a glass of wine. She’s not sure why, but when she notices his hand shaking she lets out a sigh of relief.

“Why does this feel so awkward?”

Killian huffs out with a chuckle and shakes his head.

“I don’t know if awkward would be the correct word, Swan.”

She leans her elbows on the table.

“What word would you use?”

His tongue pokes out to lick his bottom lip before he looks up at her.

“Nervous?”

Emma looks him over with a slight smile on her face. She’s never seen him this way before. He’s always been so cocky and confident, but now he’s insecure and fumbling. She doesn’t want that. The person she wants is the person she met months prior. She reaches her hand out and grabs his right hand before he can pull it back to himself.

“Hey,” she whispers.

Killian looks up at her through his eyelashes and she suddenly wonders why she hasn’t noticed how beautiful they are.

“I’m nervous, too. But can we try and forget all that and just be us?”

His fingers lace through hers and he nods.

“Aye.”

They spend the entire dinner talking and opening up to each other in ways neither have done in years. The conversation flows between the two and she forgets about her worries because it all feels so natural.

Spending time with Killian is easy, they understand each other. They both have things that have happened to them in their past and neither have to explain when a question goes unanswered or a story stops in the middle because the memory is too painful.

Emma tells him about some interesting things Henry did when he was growing up and he listens with rapt attention. She notices how his eyes light up while she talks about her son and it makes her insides sing. Killian truly cares for Henry.

He asks so many questions, what Henry’s first word was, what he was like as a baby…

Then he tells her about some of the adventures they’ve had since they met. How Henry taught him how to play his ‘Knights and Dragons’ game and was celebrated when he slayed the fierce dragon Henry spent days trying to defeat, and how Killian helped him with his history project about pirates.

Emma thought she knew the extent of Killian’s relationship with her son, but it was much more than she ever could have dreamed of. They were close, extremely close, Henry told him things she thought he only told her and she would bet her next paycheck that there were probably things he told Killian that he never told her.

Male bonding.

Throughout the night she also can’t help but notice how aware he is of her needs. When her drink needs to be topped off, he’s pouring more before she realizes, when she’s finished with her food, he takes the plate so that it’s not sitting in front of her, and when she shivers, he walks over and puts his jacket over her shoulders.

She tells herself the goosebumps are from the wine and not from the smell of his cologne that’s on the jacket.

“That’s amazing,” she says with a smile after he gets done one of his stories. “Liam sounds like he was a real hero.”

A soft smile comes to his face but his eyes stay on his glass of wine. “Aye, that he was. A better man than I could ever wish to be, I dare say.”

Emma takes a sip of her wine and leans on the table.

“I don’t know. I kind of like the man you turned out to be.”

Killian gives her a smirk and she blushes as she looks down at her lap. When she looks back up, he wipes his lips and shakes his head.

“Can I ask you something, Swan?”

She has to hold back her chuckle. “If I said no would that stop you?”

He bites his bottom lip and stares at her for a quick second before he speaks.

“Why did you kiss me that night?”

Emma wraps her arms around her stomach. Not once have they addressed the white elephant that was always in the room with them and now that he was finally asking, she feels insecure. Why did she kiss him that night? She’s asked herself that question a million times, but she was too afraid to admit it to herself, let alone him. So she does what she always does, and falls back on her wit.

“Well, you _did_ dare me.”

He chuckles and leans forward on the table. “I’ve dared you plenty of other times, never once did you take me up on it… until that night.”

She licks her lips and they both keep their eyes locked on each other. His eyes plead for the truth and it causes her to let out a sigh. She feels vulnerable and open, but also wanting to tell him the truth.

Killian stays quiet as she leans forward and reaches up with her hand to brush her fingers over his prosthetic. His body stiffens before she grasps it in her hand and looks up at him.

“I wanted to.” His lips twitch and she bites her lip. “Why did you dare me?”

His eyes search her face with a soft smile.

“I wanted you to.”

When they hear bells chime form the church down the street, she’s surprised that it’s eleven o’clock. Her mind drifts to thoughts of Henry and how he’s doing. Killian must notice her shift because he mumbles about how they should get back, and she knows that there is a hint of disappointment in his voice, because it courses through her, as well.

She doesn’t want the night to end, she wants to spend more time with Killian because he makes her feel things she thought she would never feel.

Emma tries to offer to help clean up, but he rebuffs her gesture and just ushers her off of the deck and when his fingers lace through her own, she can’t help but smile.

They are silent as they walk down the steps and she doesn’t argue when he continues instead of going for the elevator because it’s more time she gets to spend with him.

“Do you think that lad was okay tonight?”

Emma chuckles.

“I’m just hoping he ate dinner and that he wasn’t a bother for Mrs. Cuse. I should make sure…”

“No need, love. I told her I would pop in when we were done.”

She gives him a small smile in thanks and they are outside of her apartment before she even realizes it.

“I’d invite you in, but I probably have an eleven-year-old passed out on my couch right now.”

Killian gives her a bright smile. “I suppose we’ll just have to wait till next time.”

“Next time?” she asks in a soft whisper.

He brings their clasped hands up to his lips and gives the back of her fingers a tender kiss.

“Will you go out with me again?”

She bites her lip before she nods. His perfect teeth bare from behind his lips before he slowly moves closer to her.

Emma closes her eyes and lets out a soft whimper as they kiss. Her hands move up over his chest and she has to keep from moaning at the feel of his muscles under her fingertips. She opens her mouth when his tongue touches her bottom lip and his arms go around her waist. Her hands move up and run through the back of his hair.

The kiss ignites a fire in her and she wants nothing more than to end their night in a more pleasurable way, but she knows that she can’t, and it isn’t just because Henry is home, it’s because she knows herself. If Emma sleeps with him, she’ll find an excuse in the morning for them to not see each other again. It’s in her nature, and she doesn’t want that. Not with Killian.

She wants him in her life, she feels like she almost needs him in her life.

So when he pulls away with a puff of air across her lips, she doesn’t argue. She simply turns around so that he can pull the jacket from her shoulders with a big smile on her face.

“Goodnight, Killian.”

“Goodnight.”

When she gets into her apartment and closes the door, she leans back and brings her hands to her face. Giddy can’t begin to describe how she feels.

High is more like it.

Emma is high on Killian Jones and she’s loving every second of it.

* * *

 

_ **Emma's Dress** _


	9. Chapter Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, I just want to say how blown away I am by all of you. Seriously, you guys just make it so enjoyable to post and write. Thank you all for the comments/kudos, you'll never know how much they mean to me!
> 
> Second, thanks so much to Alex, my friend on Tumblr, for prereading this chapter, giving me advice, and for being an all around awesome human being. ::kisses::
> 
> Third, I wouldn't let the kiddies read this chapter ;-)

True to her word, they go out again. The weather is starting to get nicer and Killian decides to take her and Henry to the carnival in Central Park.

They walk around hand in hand while the boy rambles on about each ride he’s going to try. When he takes out his wallet to pay, Emma tries to argue, but he just gives her a pointed look and buys the boy a wrist band.

Henry cries out in excitement and takes off. They talk about none important things and cuddle close while Henry runs from ride to ride. Killian can’t remember the last time he felt so normal. Even when he was with Milah, things were always so crazy; they rarely spent a quiet night together. They craved adventure and were always looking for the next party.

But things with Emma are different; he doesn’t crave adventure, because getting to know her is an adventure in itself. He finds that spending time with her and Henry is more satisfying than any pub scene, and it isn’t just because he’s older, it’s because they make him happy by just _being_ there.

His left arm is wrapped around her shoulder as they follow Henry to the next ride. He lifts his cup of beer up and takes a sip when he feels her touch his stomach and motion with her head to one of the games.

“Do you see that?”

His eyes search over the tent before they land on the object she’s talking about and he lets out a snort.

“Want me to win it for you, Swan?”

She looks up at him with a raised eyebrow before she pulls him over to the game. With his plastic cup between his teeth, he digs into his pocket while she drags him to the table. He hands the man some money and puts his drink down on the ledge. When he picks up the bb gun, he wiggles his eyebrows at her and she giggles.

“Think you can do it?”

He snorts and lines up the shot. The gun is light in his hands and his eyes watch each moving target carefully. His finger pulls the trigger quickly and each shot, five in total, hit their targets. He gives her a cocky smirk while she claps in celebration.

“We have a winner!” The carnival worker cries out. “Pick your prize, sir.”

He points to what caught their eye and when the man gives it to him, he turns to Emma with a smile. She takes the stuffed doll and giggles.

“My very own Captain Hook!”

He chuckles and eyes the stuffed cartoon doll in her hand.

“You sure he’s your favorite, love?”

Her lips pout and she looks down at the doll as they walk off to the bumper cars where Henry is waiting in line. “You have something against Captain Hook?”

Taking the doll from her, he looks at it in disgust and turns it around in his hand.

“This fellow looks like a right git, waxed mustache and a perm?”

“How do you think he’s supposed to look?’

He bites his lip and lifts his shoulder in a shrug. “Mysterious in a dangerous sort of way… handsome, I gather.”

A mix between a snort and a giggle escapes her lips as she takes the doll back. “Are you sure you’re not describing yourself?”

“I would make a dashing pirate if I do say so myself.”

“Hm,” she says with a tilt of the head. “If you’re a pirate then I guess I’ll need someone to protect me at night, and who better than Captain Hook?”

His arm goes back around her while he speaks softly into her ear.

“Aye. Just want to watch out for his hook, move a certain way, he might poke you with it.”

Emma lets out a laugh and smacks him in the stomach as they walk up to stand next to the ride.

They both look up to see Henry standing in line practically bouncing on his feet as he waits for the people before him to leave the cars. The gate is barely open when he pushes through and runs out onto the platform.

“He likes to act like a grown up but he’s still such a kid at heart.”

A smile graces his lips before he presses them to her temple. “Well, I don’t know about you, love. But bumper cars are fun at any age.”

They stay silent as they watch Henry drive the car around with his head thrown back in laughter. He calls out their names and they both wave at him when he drives by.

“You do know he’s probably going to pass out in the car on the way home, right?”

“I’m sure if we fuel him with enough funnel cake, he might stay awake.”

Her mouth falls open and she looks up at him in shock. “So you can go back to your nice quiet apartment while I deal with a sugared up eleven-year-old? No thank you!”

He laughs and pulls her closer to him. They spend the rest of the night cuddling and watching Henry have a good time. She eventually relents and lets Henry get funnel cake, but only allows him to eat half. They share cotton candy while Henry eats and he has to remind himself he can’t lick her fingers clean like he wants too when she feeds him a piece.

When the lad runs off to use the bathroom, she picks the plate up and offers it to him. “Do you want some before I throw it out?”

“Of course!” he insists and she rolls her eyes.

His fingers rip off a small piece before she tosses it in the trash and sits back down.

“You have powder all over your lips.”

“Aye?” she nods and he leans into her. “Want to get it for me, love?”

He watches her cheeks tint before she leans forward and kisses him. It’s soft and sweet, and she giggles when he rubs his lips across her face in a playful manner.

“Okay, a child is present again!”

They pull away as Henry sits back at the picnic table and he can’t help but smirk when he sees the boy trying to hide his smile.

They spend another couple hours at the carnival, and just like his mother predicted, Henry falls asleep in the back of her bug on the drive home. He has a glow stick around his neck and his arms wrapped around the stuffed Hulk doll Killian won for him at ring toss.

After he carries the sleeping lad into the building and puts him in his bed, they snuggle on the couch to watch a movie and he once again feels warmth wash over him with her in his arms.

After two dates, all his fears of being in a committed relationship with someone are gone and he knows the only person that he wants to be with is her.

“Emma?” he whispers.

“Hm?”

His lips brush over her temple. “I’m really enjoying this.”

She hums and snuggles herself closer to him which causes him to smile.

“What I’m trying to say, love, is that I’d like to see this through. See it past just a couple dates.”

The smile that spreads across her face when she looks up is so beautiful it makes his heart skip a beat.

Very softly, she murmurs, “I’d like that, too.”

His lips are on hers before he knows it and they spend the next hour making out on the couch, the movie they were watching completely forgotten.

And when he goes back to his apartment that night, he imagines her beneath him while he finds his blissful release.

* * *

Killian knocks on Emma’s front door and can’t help but smile when it opens to reveal her standing there with her hair piled on top of her head.

“Hey,” she whispers out before she leans forward and gives him a soft kiss.

“’Ello, love.”

“How was work?” she asks as he closes the door behind him.

“Slow, just some of the few regulars. Tanya is working the night shift so I’m sure it’ll pick up for her.”

She snorts as she leafs through her mail.

“Those drunken old men do seem to love her and her belly shirts.”

“Imagine how heartbroken they would be if they found out she plays for the other team,” he answers with a wiggle of his eyebrows.

She puts the mail back down on the counter and turns to him with a laugh. “I don’t think it would be heartbroken, more like obsessed.”

They share a chuckle before he looks around.

“Where’s Henry?”

She lets out a sigh that almost makes her seem nervous before she speaks. “He’s staying over at Avery’s tonight. Apparently all the boys are having a tournament or something going on with the Xbox…”

He nods. “Aye. He told me, they are competing to see who’s better at his ‘Knights & Dragons’ game. So I guess that means it’s just us tonight?”

With a quick nod, she turns to face the counter.

“You want to go out to eat then, or do you want to just order something?” He leans his hip against her kitchen counter and tilts his head when he sees her staring off into space, her face is scrunched in concentration. “Swan?”

She blinks over at him and shakes her head. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”

“I asked what you wanted to do for dinner. Are you alright?”

Her teeth snag her bottom lip as she turns. “Yes, I was just thinking.”

Her forehead is still creased so he leans forward and presses his lips to it as he whispers, “What were you thinking?”

His right hand goes to her waist and his thumb rubs her hip bone in a soothing manner

She lets out a puff of air and squares her shoulders.

“I’m thinking that we should have sex.” Killian snaps back and stares at her. When his eyebrows raise up to his hairline, she blinks and continues. “If you want.”

He looks away from her for a quick second before he chuckles in disbelief. “Is that a trick question?”

She smiles and shakes her head as she tucks a piece of hair behind her ear.

“I’m actually serious.” When he doesn’t speak she starts again. “I mean, we’ve been dating for two weeks and I don’t plan on dating anyone else, and I know you don’t. We’ve already said we want this to go further and it’s the first time we’ve actually had time to ourselves so I figured why not? It’s just… I don’t know about you but all this making out and kissing all the time has really been a struggle for me and we both know that it’s easy for us with people in our past because they were strangers, but just because we’re together doesn’t mean it can’t be easy for us, too. And, ugh,” she lets out a little chuckle and shakes her head. “Feel free to stop me from my babbling at any time.”

He watches as she rambles on with a look of pure amusement and stays completely silent. Emma just flat out said they should have sex. There was no beating around the bush, there were no subtle hints, she just said it. He starts to wonder if she will ever stop surprising him, but also prays that she won’t. It’s not like the thought hasn’t crossed his mind, hell, he’s thought of it just about every single day since they met, but he’s held back. And she’s right, the kissing has been driving him crazy, his cock and his right hand have become quite close, but he doesn’t want to rush. He wants to go at her pace, whatever she’s comfortable with, because the thought of losing her makes him feel hollow.

But there she is, putting it out there, suggesting it then asking if _he_ wants to. His cock was hard in that second and he’s struggling with taking her right there.

Killian loops his thumb in the top of his jeans and smirks when he sees her eyes shoot down to his crotch before they look back up at him. “Well, a fellow likes to be courted.”

Her lips twitch as she tries to hide her amusement. “Courted?”

“Aye.”

They share flirty looks before she brushes past him and walks out of the kitchen. For a second he starts to panic, he was only trying to jest and didn’t mean to offend. He turns to call out to her, but stops and his mouth drops open.

With her hips swaying back and forth, she slowly walks toward the bedroom, pulling her shirt over her head. She throws it onto the ground and turns back to him, making his mouth go dry. 

Standing barefoot, in blue jeans and a green lace bra, she gives him a saucy smirk. “I think we’ve done enough courting.”

Killian reaches up to rub the back of his head, like he’s contemplating what she’s saying, but once she pops open the button on her jeans, he can’t hold himself back any longer. He lunges and sees her big smile right before he bends down to grab her legs and throw her over his shoulder.

Her giggles echo off the walls as he races down the hall. She bounces on the bed when he throws her down and his heart starts to race when she sits up and moves to the edge. Her hands clench his shirt before she pulls him so that he stands between her legs and down to her lips. He moans and reaches up to pull the band from her hair, causing it to fall down over her shoulders. He’s always loved the way her golden hair fell around her and he would be damned if he wasn’t going to see it fall while he takes her.

She pulls back and shakes her head so her hair falls completely while his fingers trace her jaw. He swallows when she gives his thumb a little bite before she reaches out to push his shirt up until he stops her to pull it off himself while her hands move to his belt buckle. His jaw clenches and his eyes squeeze shut when he feels her tongue and lips on his stomach.

Voice low, she moves her hand to his left wrist. “Take it off.”

His eyes pop open and he looks down, the shirt he was wearing is dangling on his left wrist, caught on the brace for his prosthetic. When he doesn’t move, she looks up at him and it’s the sexiest thing he’s ever seen. They stare at each other for a couple seconds as her fingers ghost over his brace before he nods and starts to unhook it. Whenever he’s slept with a woman in the past, he’s always made sure to keep his shirt on, so that they wouldn’t see the brace or the scars on his back, but he had been so caught up in what was about to happen, he didn’t even think twice when she wanted his shirt off.

The brace along with his shirt fall to the ground before she kisses his stomach again. His pants aren’t even fully down when she takes him into her mouth.

His head throws back, and his voice chokes in pleasure. “Bloody hell!”

She hums around him and his fingers dig into her shoulder while he pants and moans. Her mouth is slowly driving him crazy and he’s finding it hard to keep composure. His hand moves to the back of her head and his fingers massage her scalp, but when she takes him fully into her mouth, he has to pull back.

His body is shaking when she looks up at him in concern, but he just shakes his head with a smirk.

“You’re wearing too much clothing, darling.”

with a lick of her lips, she lays back on the bed to pull her jeans down while he leans down and unties his boots. By the time he’s done, she’s resting on her elbows in nothing but her undergarments and he kicks his pants off. He eyes her with lust as he kneels onto the bed and crawls in between her legs like a predator going after his prey. Her chest starts to heave and he keeps his eyes on her while he reaches out to grab her left leg, bringing her ankle to his lips causing her to whimper.

His lips drag up her leg softly, in such a slow agonizing pace, that by the time he reaches her center, he can practically smell her arousal. With his teeth, he pulls her panties down before he takes her leg, throws it over his shoulder and dives in.

Emma’s back arches off the bed and Killian lets out a deep groan at the taste of her. She tastes of vanilla and sunshine and he swears if he was to die in that moment, he would be okay with it, because he would die a very happy man.

His tongue laps up her wetness before he circles around her tight nub while she pants and when he looks up, he can see her biting her lip, attempting to control herself.

_Well this just won’t do._

Stopping his task, he waits until her eyes snap open and she looks down at him.

He softly blows against her wetness, sending goosebumps over her skin, and whispers, “Let me hear you, love.”

She visibly swallows and he keeps his eyes locked on hers as he moves his lips back to her core. She still isn’t making noise besides the light whimpers and pants, but when he inserts a finger, her head falls back with a loud moan and he almost spurts all over her sheets at the sound.

“Killian, gods!”

He’s always loved the way his name sounded on her lips, almost like his name was thought of just for her to speak it, but hearing her moan it is like the angels themselves are singing. She’s no longer quiet, her moans are loud and he can feel her thigh begin to shake on his shoulder.

Inserting a second finger, her wetness making it easy to slip right in, he curls them into a come hither motion causing her to explode. He flattens his tongue to press her clit while her hips rock in time with his fingers and her hands grip his hair so tight, he almost thinks she’s going to pull it out, but he doesn’t complain, because Emma Swan coming undone is by far the most beautiful thing he’s ever had the pleasure of witnessing in his entire life.

Her body finally relaxes and drops to the bed but he continues to lick her, part of him never wanting to stop. She tries to push him away, her sensitive bundle causing shocks to run through her body, but he lifts his stunted arm up and puts pressure on her stomach for her to lay back.

When he’s done lapping her clean, he realizes she’s laying there, with her chest panting as she comes down from her high, holding his mangled wrist, rubbing her thumb across his scarred flesh. It causes his heart to burst and he kisses his way up her stomach so that he can collect himself before his lips trail over her bra.

Her back lifts up and he’s confused until he realizes she’s unhooking her bra. He helps her pull it away and he can’t help the moan because his imagination was nothing compared to the real beauty that is Emma completely naked.

He quickly latches his lips onto her right nipple and she whimpers incoherent words. He can feel her arm reach out to the side and fumble for a second as he kisses up her chest to her neck, his tongue licking at her pulse point before bites softly while his right hand moves back down to her center, flicking her still sensitive clit.

“You’re going to be the death of me,” she pants out while her body shivers.

He laughs against her neck before he moves to give her a quick peck, taking the item away from her  while he whispers against her lips, “Aye. But what a way to go.”

Softly, he kisses her again before he leans back onto his knees, eyes raking over her wrecked looking form as he uses his teeth to rip open the foil package. He’s blowing the package out of his mouth when Emma grabs the condom from him and rolls it over his cock, before she reaches up to grab his necklace and pulls. He bites back a moan while he falls down to her chest, her tongue poking out to lick his lips, and lines himself up at her entrance.

Her legs wrap tightly around his waist, giving him the opening he needs as he slowly pushes into her warmth. Their moans mingle together and he swears he’s never felt anything more wonderful than the feeling of being inside of her. He’d gladly spend the rest of his days buried there if he could.

When he pulls back, only to sink himself back into her seconds after, it’s like a fog has been lifted. He wants to go slow, he wants to show her how much she means to him, how much _this_ means to him, but it feels like he’s been waiting for this moment for years, centuries even, and he just can’t, she feels too good and he can’t hold himself back. His pace starts to pick up, muscles gripping him from the inside, while their hips slap together in hard thrusts, causing her to moan loudly in his ear.

“A siren. Calling me to you always,” he confesses in a tight voice. “Could spend eternity in your heavenly quim.”

Her hands go to his chest and before he knows what’s happening, she’s pushing him until he’s on his back and sinking herself down onto him. She starts a slow pace, both of them panting and moaning at the feel of each other. He meets her thrust for thrust as his hand and stunted arm fall to her sides.

His tongue drags across his bottom lip as he watches her move over him, her cheeks are flushed and there is a thin layer of sweat that shimmers across the skin on her face, her eyes are closed, her lips are parted in pleasure and he knows he’s never seen anything more beautiful in his entire life.

Suddenly, he feels as if she’s too far away, and sits up, wrapping his left arm around her waist. She lets out a gasp at the new angle and he moves his head down to lick her breasts.

Panting with his lips still against her chest, he speaks. “Beautiful. So bloody beautiful.”

She moans in response and digs her nails into his biceps, riding him harder and faster. His left arm stays around her, helping her move, his hips rising to thrust up, while his right hand snakes in between them. She throws her head back and lets out a loud moan when his fingers rub her clit.

“That’s it, Emma,” he groans against her neck, nipping her sweat covered skin with his teeth. “Let me hear you.”

He can feel himself getting close, it’s honestly a miracle he’s lasted this long, so his fingers move faster, causing her hips to jerk erratically over him. He stills below her, his arm yanking her back and forth so that she can take them both over the edge.

Their cries of pleasure fill the room as she tightens and he explodes. Fireworks erupt behind his closed eyelids, his entire body vibrating, while she slows, her walls quivering around him as they both come down from their euphoric high. Panting, he collapses back onto the bed, pulling her down with him.

After a couple of moments, Emma lifts herself up and rolls over to lay next to him. Killian gives her forehead quick kiss before he leans up, tosses the condom into the trash can next to her bed and lays back down.

Panting still, she props her head up on her hand and smiles down at him. “So that’s what I’ve been missing?”

An airy chuckle escapes his throat. “Aye?”

Her teeth catch her bottom lip while her eyes darken, and even though it's been only moments since he found release, his cock starts to twitch at the way she’s looking at him.

Voice soft and low, she rolls back on top of him. “Let’s do it again.”

He groans right before her lips collide with his. They have sex twice more before finally succumbing to exhaustion.

That night, Killian falls asleep with Emma’s head on his chest and his arms wrapped around her and for the first time in years, he finally feels completely at peace.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ::scratches my ear nervously:: hope it was as good for you as it was for me!


	10. Chapter Ten

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to wait, but you guys gave me so much love, I had to post. If you don't know it yet, every comment, and kudos means the WORLD to me. thank you all so much. oh, and if I haven't mentioned it, you can follow me on tumblr @xemmaloveskillianx. I post Sneak Peaks, text & GIFs every week, also, it's completely filled with Captain Swan trash... hehe :D
> 
> Thank you to the lovely and beautiful, @letmedieahooker for prereading, you are amazing!

** Chapter Ten **

Being with Killian is unlike anything Emma has ever felt before and she finds it addictive. It isn’t even the sex, which is heaven on earth, it’s him. Everything about him makes her feel better and makes her feel special.

And the way he is with Henry…

It’s almost like he loves her son just as much as she does.

She walks into her apartment and her brows go together when she hears what sounds like a struggle. Her eyes go wide when she walks in to see Killian and Henry wrestling in front of her couch.

“Say it!” Killian calls out.

He has his arm wrapped around her son’s neck in a headlock while Henry struggles to get free.

The boy laughs and pushes against the arms around him. “Never!”

A huge smile breaks out on her face and she crosses her arms while she watches the scene in front of her for a couple minutes.

“Say it or I’ll make you walk the plank!”

“I’ll never surrender!”

Killian reaches up to fluff his hair and lets out a loud laugh when Henry growls. After a few moments, she clears her throat to alert them that she’s there, and when they both look up, she bites her lip at the big smiles on their faces.

“Hey, mom.”

“Swan.”

Emma chuckles and puts her bag on the dining room table.

“You two boys having fun?”

“The lad here is a sore loser!”

“You cheated,” Henry laughs as he tries to break free again.

Feigning innocence, Killian gives him a noogie. “I did not!”

They wrestle for a couple more seconds before Henry’s phone beeps. Killian finally releases him and lets out a chuckle when the boy shoves him before he picks up his phone. With a roll of her eyes, and a small smile on her lips, she walks into the kitchen to start on their dinner. A content sigh escapes her when Killian walks over and leans in to place his lips against hers.

“’Ello, love.”

He reaches up to brush her hair behind her shoulder and she takes a second to look over his outfit. It’s getting warmer outside and she couldn’t be more grateful for it. Killian is always good looking, no matter what he’s wearing, but seeing him in basketball shorts and a t-shirt does something to her insides. His calves are perfectly shaped and his forearms…

She never thought it was possible to be attracted to such a random body part, but she is completely obsessed with his forearms. He rarely has them bare, the brace for his prosthetic makes him a little self-conscious, always has a hoodie or long sleeved shirt on, but when they are together inside, he wears a short sleeved shirt and she gets to admire his amazingly sexy forearms. Just the other night, she nibbled her way up his right forearm to trace the anchor tattoo on his bicep with her tongue.

Her hand brushes over them and the dark hair tickles her fingers.

His voice is low as he kisses her temple. “How was your day?”

She smiles as he wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her to his chest. “Better now.”

“Well mine was terribly dreadful.”

Emma pulls back to look at him with her brow together before he leans in and she gasps when his lips brush against her ear, voice husky as he whispers, “I couldn’t stop thinking about last night.”

Her cheeks flame and she puts her forehead against his chest. Henry went to the movies the night before with a group of friends and they spent their free time christening her living room couch. By the time they were done, they were both covered in sweat and panting.

She feels his fingers tug at the ends of her hair and she pinches his side.

“Shh!”

He chuckles and gives her another soft kiss before he pulls away. The three of them eat dinner together and while she washes the dishes, Killian helps Henry with his math homework. It warms her heart to see the two of them so close and it only makes her feelings for him grow stronger.

Later, after Henry goes to bed, she’s laying on her couch with Killian above her. She’s biting her lip to keep from moaning as he sucks on her collarbone and rubs his erection against her.

“We can’t,” she pants out. He nods but doesn’t stop, instead, his tongue traces her collarbone and her eyes squeeze shut. “Fuck.”

He wraps his left arm around her waist and pulls her up slightly while his right hand massages her thigh.

“We won’t,” he mumbles.

She swallows thickly, trying to protest more as his hand moves up closer to her center, but her argument dies before it ever reaches her lips because her skin is on fire and her core is aching. Her hips jerk when she feels his fingers reach up her shorts to trace the edge of her panties.

“I have to touch you,” he pants into her neck. “Can I touch you?”

Before she’s even done saying yes, his fingers have made their way into her panties and rubbing the outside of her core, causing her to let out a whimper.

His head snaps up from her neck, lips brushing lightly against hers as he whispers, “Can you be quiet for me, beautiful?”

Her tongue pokes out, moistening her bottom lip before she gives another nod.

He answers with a grin, “Good girl.”

When his finger finally enters her, she thanks the gods he knows to press his mouth to hers to muffle her moan. Getting control of her actions, her mouth opens to gasp while his tongue quickly traces her lips before he moves back down to her neck, something she’s learned he has a serious obsession with, and adds a second finger.

“Always so ready for me,” he gasps into her neck. “Gods, I love touching you.”

His fingers move at an achingly slow pace while his thumb slides across her sensitive nub.

With the tension boiling inside of her, the taste of copper fills her mouth while she begs. “Killian!”

He groans and speeds up his tempo, curling his fingers inside of her until they hit a spot that makes her entire body tremble. As her pants start to become louder, something she can no longer control, he moves back up to cover her mouth again, swallowing every sound that escapes her into him. Emma can feel herself on the peak of falling and when his thumb does another rough rub against her clit, she tumbles over, arching her body off the couch and throwing her head back with silent cries.

When she finally opens her eyes, she looks down to see Killian placing soft pecks across the swell of her breasts over her t-shirt while he looks up at her through his eyelashes. There’s a huge grin on his face and when their eyes connect, his eyebrow raises.

Turning her head away in embarrassment, gods why does he have to be so good at everything, he lets out a chuckle before he leans up and kisses her chin. His erection rubs against her stomach, but when she moves her hands down to his pants to help him, he stops her.

He smiles and gives her a soft kiss. “Tonight was all about you, love. I’m fine.”

Her lips press together and he laughs against them. Though she wants to return the favor, her muscles are relaxed and she feels too sated to argue, so she allows him to snuggle up to her and reminds herself to make it up to him at a later time. She doesn’t know how long they lay there in silence, his head on her chest and her fingers running through his hair, but it doesn’t matter. She feels so comfortable and can’t help the content smile on her face.

Eventually, he lifts his head and rests his chin on her chest. “I should go.”

Pouting, her arms wrap around his shoulders. “I don’t want you to go.”

He leans forward and breathes against her lips, “I don’t want to go either. I’m rather fond of sleeping next to you.”

She hums before he finally kisses her lips. Including the night they first slept together, Henry has stayed out a total of three times and each night, Killian has spent with her. Having him sleeping next to her is one of her favorite things and falling asleep in his arms makes her feel safe, but they both agreed that he shouldn’t sleep over when Henry is home, just because he’s okay with them being together, doesn’t mean he would be okay with seeing Killian sleep in her bed.

But they’ve been together for three months, though they try not to do it often when he’s around, Henry has seen them kiss and he knows that they are getting serious. The kid even took to introducing Killian as his mom’s boyfriend to his friends before they went out on their date.

“So stay,” she says softly against his lips.

Killian pulls back enough so that he can look at her. “But your boy…”

Running her hands up and down her back, she gives a slight shrug. “Maybe you can stay but sneak out before he wakes up?”

“Trying to make me your dirty little secret, Swan?” he asks with an arched eyebrow and a smirk.

Her eyes roll, but she’s having trouble making the smile on her face go away.

“You always wake up crazy early anyway, and it wouldn’t be all the time. But sometimes… it would be nice to not have to wait until Henry stays out.”

His face softens. “Aye.”

Moving to kiss her, she pulls back before he can reach her lips and gives him a pointed look.

“No sex.” His eyes widen with amusement at her comment and she slaps his arm. “I’m serious!”

With a nod and a slight chuckle, repeats, “No sex.”

Emma lets out a slight squeal when he lifts her into his arms and carries her to the bedroom. To her complete surprise, and a little disappointment, when they crawl into bed, he listens to her no sex rule and doesn’t try anything. He just pulls her into his arms and she falls asleep with his head in her hair.

* * *

Her rule about him not staying over all the time lasts about two seconds, because any night he doesn’t work at the bar, he’s sleeping in her bed with his arms tightly around her. She tries to say it’s because of him, but the truth is is that it’s all her. Before he can ever mention leaving, she’s pulling him to the bedroom telling him it's time for bed.

When he does sleep over, she always wakes the next morning to a kiss on the forehead and fingers in her hair before she hears the bedroom door close. When he doesn’t sleep over, she sleeps restlessly, and wakes the next morning to a sweet text, that makes her smile like a teenager and causes her to fall even more head over heels.

**I wish I was next to you. – K**

**Dream of me. – K**

**I’m counting the minutes until you’re in my arms again. – K**

The one rule she does follow and so does he without question, is the no sex rule. They are grown adults and can restrain from jumping each other.

Most of the time.

Having a quick romp during her lunch break in the back seat of her bug or in the hallway when Henry goes out to play with his friends is completely justifiable.

Especially when she stops by the bar when it’s dead during the day, and he locks the door so they can have sex on the desk in the back office.

Killian oozes sex. He’s like a walking sex magnet, she’s known that since the moment they met and it hasn’t changed at all.

He’s still filled with innuendos but the only problem is that she knows how good he is at delivering those innuendos and it drives her even more crazy. She swears he does it on purpose, turns her on because he can. Just before he left for work that night, he kissed her until she was breathless, then when she made the comment that his teasing was like a jab in the gut, he pulled her close and breathed into her ear.

“Trust me, Swan. When I jab you with my sword, you’ll feel it.”

Ever since, she’s been tied up in knots. Henry fell asleep an hour before and she decided to go to bed early for lack of things to do.

After a couple hours, she rolls over with a huff. Her muscles are tight and all she can think about is Killian. The way he tastes, the way he feels when he’s above her…

She really is going to kill him.

Her phone goes off and she glares at it when she sees it’s a text.

**How is your night, darling? – K**

**Pretty dull. I’m just lying in this big bed all by myself. – E**

**Hmm, that’s quite a travesty. – K**

She smirks.

**It is getting kind of warm though. – E**

**May I make the suggestion that you take something off? – K**

**Who says I haven’t already? – E**

**Mm, now that is a lovely thought. – K**

Her heart starts to race and she gets an idea. Killian once told her he’s obsessed with the curve of her neck and the way her hair flows across it. He also told her that whenever she bit her lip, it drove him insane.

Emma lifts her head and runs her hands through her hair for a fuller look. She brings the camera app up and lifts the phone above her to take a picture. It takes her a couple tries before she gets the perfect one. Her hair flows across her bare shoulder while her head is tilted to show the curve of her neck, her face is cut off right under her nose and she is biting her lip.

With an evil smirk, she types out a quick message, attaches the photo and hits send.

**Why only have a thought when you can have the real thing? Have to go now, hands are occupied and I’m tired. Have a nice night at work, babe.  – E**

She turns her phone on silent and rolls over to go to sleep with a smile on her face.

Emma wakes a couple hours later covered in sweat. The New York heat is slowly trying to kill her but she refuses to turn the air conditioning on until June. Something Henry complains about a great deal and his reasoning for going over to Killian’s all the time.

Apparently, her boyfriend has no qualms with turning his air conditioner on and likes to crank it up. She always complains about how cold it is whenever she goes over and they both look at her like she’s grown two heads.

She turns her fan on high and tries to go back to sleep. She’s just about to doze off when her phone vibrates on the end table.

**Are you awake? – K**

Her eyes squint at the bright light of the phone. He sent the message fifteen minutes ago so he might still be up.

**What’s wrong? – E**

**Unlock the door. – K**

She stares at the message for a quick second before jumping out of the bed and rushing to the front door. Her heart is racing as she tries to figure out what might be wrong, Killian never texts her about coming over after he worked and it has her slightly panicked.

Her hands shake as she turns the locks and when she finally rips the door open, she finds him standing there, arms out leaning on the door frame, and his head down. When he looks up at her, her throat goes dry at the hunger in his eyes.

“Killian… what’s…”

Before she can finish, he moves forward and slams his lips onto hers. His left arm wraps around her waist, yanking her to him and his right hand goes to the back of her head as he kisses her in a bruising fashion, making her knees go weak.

She’s not sure how long they stand there kissing before they are forced to pull apart to breathe. His forehead leans against hers and she swallows before she lets out a chuckle.

“Not that I’m complaining…”

“After you sent that picture, that’s all I’ve been bloody thinking about and I couldn’t wait until morning.” They stand there in silence for a couple moments before he moves his lips up to her forehead. “Apologizes if I woke you, love…”

She shakes her head and tells him how she was already awake. When he tries to leave, she laces her fingers through his and pulls him inside. When they get to her bedroom, she closes the door quietly before she turns just in time for him to pull her into his arms.

“Bad form sending that photo while I was at work.”

His fingers ghost over the curve of her neck and her hands tighten on his waist.

Trying to make her voice sound normal, she whispers back, “Like you didn’t know what you were doing to me all day.”

His fingers move from her neck to her hair and she bites her lip without thinking, causing him to groan and rest his forehead against her own.

“Minuscule in comparison to what you do to me on a daily basis, darling.”

Their lips find each other again and she can’t help but breathe him in. They back up toward the bed and all reasons why they shouldn’t go further fly away from her mind.

He lays her down softly and starts to trail kisses up her throat, pausing to lick the curve of her neck and giving it a little bite before he continues his climb. Her hand fumbles to open the draw on her end table as she tries to concentrate but when he pushes her tank top up and starts to kiss her stomach, she loses all train of thought.

“Shit,” she hisses right before she feels his grin against her skin.

“Quiet, darling.”

Her fist clenches around the condom as she chuckles.

“I thought you liked hearing me.”

Killian sits up, arching his eyebrow up as he takes the condom from her and she instantly goes stiff. Henry is in the other room and she’s about to have sex with her boyfriend. He must notice her change and pulls her to sit up with him.

“Emma, we don’t have to do anything,” he whispers. “I’m just happy to be here with you. Spending the night without you is terrible.”

She nods in appreciation and he kisses the crown of her head. She watches as he stands from the bed, tosses the condom aside, and starts to get undressed. When he’s stripped down to his boxers, she smiles as he gets into the bed and pulls her into his arms. Her fingers run across his stump and he hums.

Though he acts cocky and sure of himself, Emma knows his one insecurity is his hand. But when they are alone in the darkness, he’s so open, without words, he shows her parts of him she has a feeling he’s never showed anyone before and it only makes her want to know more, know all of his parts.

His arms tighten around her and she snuggles into his chest. Her thighs rub together, her core still aching, and when his breath blows across her forehead, she has to swallow down her moan. But when his fingers start to run through her hair, she loses her battle.

Sitting up with a smirk, she throws her leg over him and straddles his waist.

“Think you can keep quiet, sailor?”

She bites back a chuckle at his shocked expression while his hand and stump go to her waist before he licks his lips.

“Are you sure, love?”

Her answer is a kiss on his lips and a jerk of her hips. Their coupling is quick, all of the teasing they did earlier in the day catching up to them, and when they reach their peaks, the only sounds that are heard are their harsh pants and deep gasps of air.

The next morning, her alarm beeps and Emma groans as she reaches up to turn it off. She lays back down and feels an arm wrap around her from behind.

“Good morning, love,” he whispers as he kisses the back of her head.

A groan escapes her lips which causes him to chuckle. She has never been a morning person, but waking up with Killian does make it a little easier. Trying to get back into a comfortable position, she snuggles back into him, but stops when he lets out a hiss.

“Mmm,” she moans with a smile.

“Dangers of waking up next to a beautiful woman, I’m afraid.”

She moves back some more and he lets out a growl, his right hand tightening on her hip.

“Swan.”

With a smile, she turns to face him and gives him a soft kiss before he pulls her close to his chest.

“I would think you would be tired out after last night.”

Voice still thick with sleep, he gives her a smirk and reaches down to palm her ass while he whispers, “I could never tire of you.”

Killian leans in and gives her another kiss. When he tries to deepen it, she pulls away, mumbling about morning breath, but he just shakes his head and kisses her again.

She hums as her hand runs up his forearm, she seriously can’t stop touching them, to cup his jaw. What she wouldn’t give to have a good round of morning sex, but she knows they can’t go any further, Henry will be up soon. But that doesn’t stop her from wanting to enjoy the feel of him just a little longer.

She makes the decision right then to talk to Henry that night about Killian sleeping over.

Pulling back with a small smile, his fingers push a few strands of hair out of her face before he rubs his thumb across her chin.

“I should go before the lad…”

There’s a knock on her door and they both look up.

“Mom, are you up?”

Both of their eyes go wide before they scramble out of the bed. She knows Henry wouldn’t open her door without permission, but she doesn’t want to take the chance.

“Ugh, yeah, just woke up, what’s up, kid?” she calls out as she pulls her shorts up her legs.

Emma spots Killian’s hoodie on the floor and tosses it at him.

“Where’s my shirt?” he hisses.

They both search for a few seconds before he finally gives up and throws his hoodie on, zipping it up to cover his bare chest.

“Can we have pancakes for breakfast?” Henry asks from the other side of the door.

She looks over to see Killian struggling to pull up his pants and rushes over to help him as she yells back to her son, “Sure! I’ll be out in a sec.”

When his pants are up, she grabs his brace off the table and puts it on him as he leans down to pull his boots on.

“How the bloody hell am I going to get out of here if he’s awake?” he asks in a frantic whisper.

She starts to shake her head when they hear Henry from the other side of the door.

“Cool. I’m going to get in the shower.”

They both sigh in relief when they hear the bathroom door shut. He grabs his wallet and phone from the bedside table and puts them in his pocket. Her heart is pounding but she can’t help but let out a giggle, and when Killian raises his eyebrow, she has to put her hand over her mouth to hold back another.

“Is this funny to you, Swan?”

Biting her lip, she nods before he reaches out to pinch her side, causing her to let out a little squeal of laughter. He continues to try and tickle her but she swats his hand away. His left arm wraps around her waist and he pulls her to him for a kiss.

“Mm,” she moans into his lips.

She starts to back away, but he follows, keeping his lips still fused to hers.

Chucking, she mumbles, “You have to go.”

He nods, but instead of pulling back, he deepens his kiss. Her arms wrap around his shoulders just as he pushes her against the door.

“I shan’t be gone long,” he says against her lips.

She kisses him again and nods. After a few more moments, they eventually pull away and Emma cracks her door open. When she hears the shower running, she opens it fully, turning back to tell him it’s all clear, but his lips crash against hers again.

His prosthetic presses against her back, while his hand moves to hold her head. “I’ll be back in time for breakfast.”

Emma giggles and nods, but when he moves to leave, she can’t help but pull him back to her once last time.

“Okay,” she breathes out, giving him a slight push. “You have to go.”

The smile on his face is intoxicating and she doesn’t argue when he leans back in. But when they hear the shower turn off, they eventually pull away for good.

Giggling while waving her hands at him, she hisses, “Go!”

Killian chuckles softly, leans in for one final kiss, and moves away. Her hand covers her mouth to contain another giggle when he wiggles his eyebrows at her before he rushes down the hall. Turning back around one final time, he lifts his hand and blows her a kiss causing her to roll her eyes, even though her cheeks are hurting from how much she’s smiling.

When he disappears around the corner she leans her forehead against the door frame and lets out a breath. He’ll be back before breakfast is done but she already misses him. He makes her so happy and she wants to spend every moment she can…

Her entire body goes stiff and her heart starts to pound in her chest.

It took Emma six months to fall for Neal Cassidy. They spent their time on the run, taking whatever they could find or steal. It was an adventure and she fell in love. He would whisper words of love to her, promises of how they would run away and spend their lives together in Tallahassee, where they would always have each other and she believed him. Then he left her, just like her birth parents, just like her foster parents, just like everyone, to take the fall for his own crime and unknowingly pregnant.

That’s what happens when you love people, they pretend to love you, make you think they feel the same way, all so they can gain something for themselves. With all her foster parents they pretended to love her so they could get their checks from the state, her birth parents, well, obviously, they didn’t even pretend because they left her on the side of the road, and Neal pretended so he could have someone take the fall while he ran away with his stolen watches.

So she decided to protect herself, to never let anyone in and only worry about her and Henry, because she couldn’t afford to fall for another person.

Then she goes and does something stupid like this…

They’ve only been together half as long as her and Neal were, but she knows exactly what she’s feeling.

Emma is in love with Killian.


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wanted to get this out now before we all die this weekend because of SDCC, just know, i love you all<3

When most people realize they are in love, it makes them happy, fills them with joy, and makes them want to tell that person right away.

Emma isn’t like most people. The realization that she’s in love with Killian causes shear panic and fear to run through her and the _last_ thing she wants to do is tell him.

Because she’s been down this road before. She opened her heart up to someone, let him in, and he left her broken.

She’s so stupid to think anything would be different. Love isn’t like it was in the fairytales, there are no such things as princes and princess that share True Love.

Love is hard and it hurts, and people never stick around for it to last.

The thought of a life without Killian physically pains her and she convinces herself then she can’t tell him.

He’ll use it against her, he’ll break her, just like Neal did, and what will she do then? Because she already knows deep in her heart that what she felt for Neal is _nothing_ compared to what she feels for Killian.

When he comes back for breakfast, his eyes still shine bright with joy and his smile hasn’t faltered. She tries to force hers back, but it doesn’t work and he sees right through her.

His hand makes its way to her hip, thumb rubbing the sliver of skin showing before he whispers, “Hey, are you okay, love?”

She lets out a sigh and gives him a tight lip smile.

“Yeah, I, ugh, I just have a headache.”

His brow goes together, he can probably tell she’s not being exactly truthful, so she gives him what she hopes is a reassuring nod. Her heart flutters when he presses his lips to her temple.

“Did you take something?”

Her eyes move down to the food that she is cooking and she shrugs. “I’ll take something before work.”

Luckily, Henry calls him over before he can question her more. She spends the entire day at work worrying about what she’s going to do.

He gets called in for a shift at the bar when Tanya calls out that night and guilt washes over her at the relief she feels. She spends hours in her bed missing him, wanting him with her, then berating herself for feeling that way, and every time she attempts to close her eyes, she sees Killian walking away and breaking her worse than Neal ever did.

Her phone goes off around three and she stares at it for ten minutes before she finally reaches for it, because she knows without even having to look at it, that it’s a message from Killian, he’s home from work and sending her a message like he always does.

**There wasn’t a moment that went by today where I didn’t think of you. – K**

Clutching the phone to her chest, her eyes squeeze shut as she tries to keep her tears at bay.

_God, I love you._

Killian is already there when she wakes up the next morning, he’s promised to walk Henry to school, for what reason, neither will tell her, but she’s too occupied with her internal battle to worry about it.

Now that she’s realized she’s in love with him, she notices everything.

Like how when their eyes connect, her heart skips a beat, or how when he’s close, butterflies form in her stomach, and when he kisses her, her entire body melts.

It’s hard to think when he’s around, so she makes sure to leave for work earlier than she has to while he’s walking Henry to school. He calls her just as she sits down at her desk.

“Did you leave already?”

His voice sounds confused and also a little hurt and she hates herself for it.

“Yeah, there’s just some paperwork I need to catch up on.”

“Oh,” he says softly before he clears his throat. “Apologies, I thought you were all caught up.”

Emma squeezes her eyes shut and silently curses. The other day she purposely stayed late to do extra work so they could spend the morning together.

“Um, right. I forgot about some stuff.”

He’s silent for a moment before he finally asks, “Swan, are you avoiding me?”

She puts her head in her hands and tries to make her voice sound normal. “No, of course not, why would you think that?”

He lets out a sigh and she can almost picture him squeezing his eyes shut.

“It just seems like something is bothering you. If I’ve done something to offend…”

“No,” She breathes out, cutting him off. “No, Killian, you haven’t. I’m sorry. I’ll see you tonight after I’m done work.”

“I’m at the pub again tonight.”

Her head drops down onto the desk. Again, she feels guilty for the relief that washes over her because she’ll use the night to get herself together and act normal. She never has to tell him how she actually feels and everything will be okay.

“Shit, I’m sorry. Okay, but the weekend is here, you have off all weekend, right?”

“Aye.”

“The three of us will spend the weekend together.”

He lets out another sigh and she can practically hear the smile on his lips. “That would be lovely.”

A smile of her own forms because it _does_ sound lovely and it’s all she wants to do. They get off the phone and she tries to focus on her work and not let her fear of abandonment over take her every thought.

They do.

When she falls asleep that night, she dreams she’s in some sort of jail cell, and Killian is standing in front of her on the other side of the bars. He tells her he’s done with her and walks away, leaving her alone, and locked away.

Choking out a gasp, she wakes in a cold sweat with her heart pounding in her chest. Her instincts tell her to call, just to make sure he’s still around, but when she grabs her phone, she sees his message waiting for her.

**You’re everything I ever wished for. Sweet dreams, beautiful. – K**

* * *

Emma sighs and lets her head fall back. It’s a Saturday, and there is no real reason for her to be at work, but she still hasn’t been able to shake the funk that she’s in. She tried when he came over for breakfast, she really did, but he saw right through her.

He always can tell when something is bothering her and this time is no different.

He attempted to ask her again what her problem was, for about the tenth time in three days, but they were interrupted when Kate called asking about the location of a file. She could have easily just _told_ Kate where it was, but she jumped at the opportunity to get away from Killian’s all too knowing gaze and said she had to go into work and asked him to watch Henry.

She could tell he was upset, just the morning prior she promised they would spend the weekend together and she was running off to work, but he still agreed, because if there’s one thing that she’s absolutely sure of in this whole thing, Killian would never say no to something having to do with Henry.

Now she’s sitting at her desk in an empty building trying to find the courage to not act like a complete idiot around her boyfriend. It’s not exactly rocket science, _not_ telling someone that you love them, plus, she’s an adult, there’s no need to act like an infant about the whole situation, and in the end, she’s only hurting both of them.

Her cell phone rings and her heart skips a beat when she sees it’s him calling. Part of her doesn’t want to answer it, but she does want to hear his voice.

“Hey.”

“Emma…”

The panic in his voice causes her to sit up straight. “What’s wrong?”

“There’s been an accident. I… ugh… Henry...”

Her heart starts to pound as she shoots up from her chair and runs to her car.

“Accident?”

“He’s fine…” A sigh of relief expels from her body and she sags against her car. “Just, we’re at New York General--”

“What?!” she cries out in horror.

“Take a deep breath, sweetheart. He’s fine. Can you get here?”

“I’m on my way.”

She hangs up the phone and tosses it onto the passenger seat before he even has time respond. Emma breaks almost every traffic law she can think of on her way to the hospital, but she doesn’t care.

When she finally pulls up to New York General, she barely has the car off before she jumps out.

With tears in her eyes, and mind completely blank, she runs into the emergency room of the hospital. All she can think about is getting to Henry. How did he get hurt? Why did he get hurt? Why wasn’t she there? Her eyes search the waiting room but she doesn’t see them anywhere.

When she rushes up to the front desk, the nurse jumps in surprise.

“My son was brought in… I’m looking for him. His name is…”

Before she can finish she hears a voice.

“Swan.”

Emma’s head snaps up to see Killian walking toward her. His face looks pale and her heart goes into her stomach.

“Where is he?” She pulls away when he tries to reach for her. “Where’s Henry?”

“He’s back here. The doctors gave him something to help the pain, he’s been sleeping.”

She lets out a slight sob when she sees Henry laying on the hospital bed. His leg is up in a sling, but other than that he looks completely normal.

Her hand runs over through his hair and over his face before she leans down to kiss his forehead. The doctor comes in and asks her to sign some papers so that they can do x-rays and he tells her that they don’t believe his ankle is broken, but there is a strong possibility that it’s fractured. She tries to listen as he rambles on but all she can concentrate on is the feel of Henry’s hand in her own.

She gives her consent and watches with tears in her eyes as they wheel Henry out of the room to perform their x-rays.

“What happened?” Emma hisses when they are finally alone.

Killian puffs out a breath and runs his hand through his hair. “I got a call from Barry. There was a problem at the pub with a shipment and since Larry is on vacation, I had to be the one to deal with it.”

Her blood boils and she glares at him. “You took Henry to the bar?! He’s eleven!”

“I didn’t know what else to do! We were down by the docks and I had to go, it’s my job!”

She lets out a huff and starts to pace. “You could have called me!”

“Swan, you were at work. It wasn’t going to take long. I figured we would be in and out. He wasn’t in the pub for more than five minutes before I had it straightened out. Then Barry asked for helping unloading the kegs. Henry wanted to help…”

She stops pacing. “You let him unload alcohol?”

He shakes his head and practically groans out, “It wasn’t like--”

She holds up her hand to stop him. “I don’t want to hear it! Now, because of you, my son has a fractured ankle. Fuck! I thought I could rely on you!”

He looks at her in complete anguish. “It was an accident. I didn’t think--”

“That’s the problem, you didn’t think!” She runs her hand over her face and shakes her head. “You had no right taking him there! You should have called me; I would have figured something out.”

He takes a step forward and tries to touch her but she pushes him away. She’s so angry she can’t see straight. His jaw locks and she can see the muscles under his cheek bones twitch.

“Swan, I’m sorry. I truly am. But it’s just a fractured ankle, there’s no need to panic--”

“I’m his _mother_! Don’t tell me there’s no need to panic!”

He lets out another sigh.

“I spoke to the doctor before you got here-” she snaps her head back to him and her anger grows- “they say the pain will subside in two to three weeks. They are going to give him medicine that will help.”

“You have no right to speak to them! You are _not_ his father!”

His mouth pops open, as a flash of anger forms on his face before it quickly fades to hurt and he takes a step away from her.

“I know that,” he whispers.

They both stay silent. The anger that runs through her has her heart pounding and all she can think about is how he’s let her down. Like everyone else in her life, Killian has let her down. She was an idiot to believe that he was any different.

Look out for yourself and you’ll never get hurt.

She always believed that and he manipulated her into believing otherwise.

“We’re done.”

Killian’s head snaps up and his face shows panic.

“Because of this?!” he cries out. “Emma, it was an accident! I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for him to get hurt… I would never want anything to happen to Henry, you know that!”

She shakes her head.

“It doesn’t matter. This-” she motions between the both of them. “Is over.”

Her heart is crumbling but she forces her face to stay like stone.

With his brow pinched together, he speaks in a knowingly tone, “No, there’s more to this than just Henry, isn’t there?”

Open book he once told her, but Emma refuses to give in and just looks at him with a cold stare. When she doesn’t respond, he lets out a dry chuckle, and shakes his head as he wipes his chin.

“You’ve been acting weird for days and now you’re telling me this is over? Tell me the real reason.”

She knows she can’t tell him the truth. He’ll argue with her, he’ll try and tell her that he won’t break her, possibly even lie and say he loves her, too. But Neal said all the same things, and none of it was true.

Her voice dripping with anger, she takes a step forward. “Because this is stupid, this whole thing was stupid. I should have stopped it before it ever got this far.”

“You’re _lying_ ,” he growls out. “I want the truth, Emma.”

She doesn’t want to hurt him, she loves him. But he’s not going to let her go and she knows there is only one thing she can do.

“The truth is I never _wanted_ to be with you. I told you from the beginning that I didn’t date… I tried because I didn’t want to hurt your feelings. It didn’t work, now we’re done.”

He looks at her like she’s punched him in the gut and she almost crumbles. Her heart screams at her to take the words back, to tell him that she does want to be with him more than anything, but she’s just afraid eventually he’ll leave her and it’s just better this way.

He takes a step back, his face completely contorted in pain.

“Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go take care of my son.”

She tells herself that what she sees in his eyes aren't tears and that she made the right decision as she walks out of the room to follow the doctors.

Killian doesn’t follow.

* * *

 

Henry is still sleeping when they get done with the x-rays and go back to the room, but she refuses to let herself break and forces herself to only concentrate on the feel of her son’s hand in her own. The doctor comes in a half an hour later and confirms that his ankle is fractured.

He explains that in about two to three weeks, Henry’s pain will subside and it normally takes six to eight weeks for the fracture to heal. He gives her a prescription for some pain medicine and tells her they can leave whenever they are ready.

When he leaves, Emma lets out a sigh and runs her hand through her hair. Henry is going to have to stay out of school for a couple days, he’s under strict orders to stay off his feet, and she’s going to have to tell Roger.

He’s normally flexible when it comes to her needing to take time off for Henry but two weeks is a lot. She tries not to think about the one person that could help because it hurt too much.

“Mom?”

Emma turns to see Henry sitting up in his bed and rushes over to him.

“Hey, kid,” she whispers before she gives him a kiss on the forehead

“I’m sorry, mom,” he starts. “It’s all my fault.”

She shakes her head and runs her fingers through his hair. “Shh. You don’t have to apologize.”

When he tries to explain she brushes him off and tells him that it doesn’t matter. She explains what the doctor said about the walking boot he’ll have to wear and about the pain, but he just looks at her with glassy eyes. She holds back a snort because he is still loopy from the medicine they gave him earlier and probably won’t remember anything she says.

“Where’s Killian?”

Her jaw locks to keep it from trembling before she leans down and gives him another kiss on the forehead.

“I’ll go get the nurses so we can get this boot and go home.”

He gives her a nod and she’s grateful he doesn’t ask again. When she walks out into the hall, she hates herself for feeling pain when she doesn’t see Killian.

He left… just like everyone else.

Fifteen minutes later, Henry is in a wheelchair and they are walking through the waiting room, being escorted to her car.

“Killian!”

Her head snaps up and her mouth falls open. Killian stands up from his seat in the waiting room and walks over to them.

He’s there.

He didn’t leave.

“How are you feeling?”

“Killian, I’m sorry. I should have listened…”

He shakes his head and kneels down in front of Henry so they are level with each other. “It wasn’t your fault, lad. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

She keeps her eyes on the wall to the right of her, not trusting herself to be able to keep from crumbling if she looks at him. They continue to talk in a hushed tone and when she finally can’t take it anymore, she places her hand on her son’s shoulder and gives him a fake smile.

“We should get home, kid. It’s getting late and I think there’s a tub of ice cream in our freezer with your name on it."

Her sons face lights up and she feels better, until he turns to the man kneeling before him. “Killian, are you coming, too?”

Her entire body goes stiff and she holds her breath as she waits for his answer.

“Not this time. I have to get back to the pub.”

Henry’s shoulders sag as he nods and she knows then that she’s not going to be able to keep them away from each other even if she wanted too.

Killian stands up and leans down to give Henry a kiss on the top of his head.

“I’ll talk to you soon, lad.”

* * *

Her sheets still smell like him and every night, she cuddles the pillow, _his_ pillow, close to her and lets her silent tears fall.

She misses him, she misses him more than she has ever missed anyone in her entire life. There’s a hole in her chest and no matter what she does, she can’t seem to fill it.

Spending time with Henry helps, but there’s always a feeling that something is missing.

Emma wants to ask her son if he’s spoken to him, but she doesn’t. She keeps her mouth shut and doesn’t bring _him_ up at all and neither does Henry. She’s curious as to why he hasn’t since almost every day prior to the accident Henry always asked if _he_ was coming over. She wonders if _he_ has stopped speaking to her son because of everything, but two days after the break up, she gets her answer.

She was walking down the hall to run to the store to pick up his medicine when Henry’s cell phone rang and just before she walked out the door she heard him answer it.

“Hey Killian.”

She spent fifteen minutes in her car crying before she was able to calm herself.

Two weeks later, she’s become an expert at avoiding him. She makes sure she rushes into her apartment when she comes home from work and leaves in the morning earlier than usual so that she doesn’t bump into him.

It’s just easier that way.

She walks into her apartment one night and calls out to Henry but is met with silence. When she sees the note on the fridge, tears form in her eyes.

**_I’m next door._ **

Henry doesn’t even write his name down anymore and she’s grateful for it because she can barely think it let alone read it or see it. She wishes she could stop her son from going over there, but she can’t find the power in herself to do it. Just because _he_ is gone from her life, doesn’t mean he has to be gone from Henry’s.

She lets out a sigh and walks into her bedroom to gather her dirty laundry to keep herself occupied. Since there isn’t a chance _he’ll_ be doing his laundry, it’s the perfect time. She’s seperating her clothes when something on her floor catches her eye. Getting down on her knees, she pulls the object out from under her bed.

It’s a shirt.

It’s _his_ shirt.

Without thinking, she lifts the shirt up to her face, softly sobbing when she smells his cologne. Tears stream down her face as she sits down on her bed. It’s been hard, controlling her emotions, but after finding his shirt, she realizes it was a walk through the park compared to this.

When she hears her front door close, her eyes snap over to the clock on her nightstand.

It’s eight o’clock on the dot.

Henry isn’t late coming home like he used to be. Every time she knows he’s next door, her eyes usually stay glued to the time, and she always wonders if that’ll be the time he’s late and she has to go get him.

But he never is.

The thought of having to go over and get him terrifies her. She wants to and doesn’t want to at the same time. She hasn’t seen _him_ in so long and it makes her physically ache. Her body craves him and every night her dreams are filled with his beautiful smile and the memory of his lips on her skin.

“Mom?”

Emma jumps up from her bed and shoves his shirt under the pillow before she checks the mirror to make sure no tears are visible and walks out.

“Hey, kid.”

Henry looks her over and she forces a smile. He just lets out a sigh and shakes his head before he drops his bag. Emma doesn’t say anything; she doesn’t have to. Henry is almost as good as her at spotting lies but she knows he won’t comment on it.

They sit down at the dining room table and he tells her about his day at school. He doesn’t tell her about what he did with _him_ and she doesn’t ask.

It’s easier that way.

Henry isn’t a stupid child, he’s always been smarter than anyone has given him credit for, he knows something happened between them even if she hasn’t told him. She often wonders if he has but again, refuses to ask.

“He misses you.”

She looks up from her plate and stares at her son.

“What?” Henry gives her a little shrug and she feels her heart start to race. “Who?”

She doesn’t know why she’s asks, it’s not like she doesn’t know, but she wants to seem indifferent.

He rolls his eyes and looks back down at his plate.

“He who shall not be named.”

Her lips twitch into a little smile at his comment. Her son has a serious obsession with Harry Potter, she thinks it has to do with the fact they have magic, he _loves_ the idea of magic.

“He hasn’t said anything,” Henry starts again. “But I can tell.”

She starts to squirm in her seat because she hates how her son's comment brings ray of hope to her, but she quickly squashes it down. It doesn’t matter if he misses her, they have to stay apart.

“You miss him, too.”

“Henry…”

“I know you do,” he urges. “Why won’t you just talk to him?”

A sigh escapes her lips and she stands.

“Mom, it wasn’t his fault!”

Emma shakes her head and walks into the kitchen. “I don’t want to talk about this.”

“It was mine. He told me not to go down the steps but I wanted to help.” He says as she scrapes her food into the trash and puts her plate in the sink. She hasn’t had much of an appetite lately, she doesn’t even know why she bothers to try and eat anymore. “He wouldn’t even let me touch the boxes that had beer in it.”

Hearing him explain what happened that day is too much for her. She knows it wasn’t his fault, even if she doesn’t know exactly what happened. Why she broke up with him has nothing to do with Henry getting hurt, it was just an excuse she used, because she was too scared to tell him the truth.

She was a coward.

“I was only allowed-”

“Henry!” she shouts as she slaps her hands down onto the counter.

Her son stops and stares at her in shock. It’s not often she yells at him and she immediately regrets it. They both stay silent for a couple seconds before his face goes hard.

“Kid, I’m sorry. I just…”

“I get it,” he cuts her off and stands. “May I be excused? I’m tired and would like to go to bed.”

He refuses to look at her and it breaks her heart. She mumbles a reply and he’s stalking off to his room before she gets a chance to apologize. She jumps when the door slams shut and has to wipe the tear that escapes from her eye.

She’s not sure how much longer she can handle this.

* * *

His feet pound on the ground as the rain pours down around him. He tries to make his mind clear, but all he sees is _her_ face. He pushes himself harder, but it’s a pointless task, she’s always on his mind and there is nothing he can do to change that.

Killian lets out a loud growl and stops running. His chest heaves up and down and his heart pounds. He bends forward and rests against his knees as he tries to catch his breath.

_“Because I never wanted to be with you. I told you from the beginning that I didn’t date… I tried because I didn’t want to hurt your feelings. It didn’t work, now we’re done.”_

She never wanted to be with him. He tries to forget those words, but they repeat themselves over and over in his mind every day.

Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out the only thing that makes him feel _slightly_ better. The rum burns his throat and he coughs, his body barely caught up from the exercise of his run, not ready to take the liquid. He wipes his chin of the trickle of alcohol and puts the flask back in his pocket.

His head moves back and he lets the rain wash over his face. He hasn’t spoken to _her_ since the hospital and it’s taken a toll on him.

He misses everything about her.

A deep sigh escapes him before he looks to the clock tower. Panic rushes through him before he starts to run back to his apartment building.

Killian isn’t stupid.

For months they bumped into each other in the hall, but after the hospital there hasn’t been a single run in, she’s avoiding him.

So the only time he gets to see her, is when he steals it. The rain continues to pour down and he’s only mildly aware that his sneakers are completely soaked as he pushes himself to move faster. He makes it back to his building just in time to see _her_ emerge from the entrance.

He watches as her face squints at the rain before she lifts her hood up over her head. When he first went out for his run that morning, he was grateful for the rain because it meant there wouldn’t be anyone down at the docks, now he’s cursing it because it covers _her_ face.

Hiding behind a tree across the road, he continues to watch until she jumps in her car and disappears down the street. When he can no longer see the yellow bug in the distance, he leans his forehead against the tree and closes his eyes.

For the third time in his life, his heart has been broken and this time he’s not sure if he’ll be able to survive it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> don't yell at me too much!!! :D


	12. Chapter Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, you guys talked me into it. Here is Chapter 12. ::wiggles finger:: But NO MORE this weekend.:-) Next update will be Friday. Now excuse me, while I go hide from all the yelling. double line breaks mean change of POV!

** Chapter Twelve **

Emma’s eyes move over the docks as she sips her coffee. Roger called her first thing in the morning to tell her the perp they had been tailing for a month was hired under the table on a fishing boat. It was the first lead they had and she had to jump on it, so she took Henry to school and headed straight for the docks.

She’s tired, she spent most of the night crying and when she did fall asleep, her dreams were filled with nothing but _his_ face. Her own reflection is something she’s learned to avoid since the break up because the sight of her exhaustion filled face is only a reminder of the pain she’s trying to forget.

When the harbor master unlocks the door to the factory, she puts her coffee down and gets out of her car. Riley should be showing up for work soon and it’s better if she surprises him outside so there isn’t a scene.

“Mike O’Donnell?”

The older gentleman turns to her, he has a full beard and a bald head.

“Can I help you, miss?”

Emma reaches into her pack pocket and pulls out an old photo to hand it to him.

“Do you know this man?”

Mike takes the photo and examines it with a nod. “That’s Peter. I hired him about a week ago.”

“His real name is Riley Bears. He was arrested for robbery and jumped bail. I’m here to bring him in.”

Mike looks her over with a little smile and she rolls her eyes. If she had a dollar for every time someone looked at her with reluctance when they found out her profession, she would be a millionaire.

“Well, he’s in the back.”

Her eyes go wide. “He’s already here?”

Mike nods and motions for her to follow him.

“Peter… well, Riley, has always showed up earlier than his shift to get started. He’s a good worker, I’ll be sad to see him go.”

“Sad until he robs from you.”

The man lets out a chuckle and nods his head. They walk up to an empty work station and Emma watches as Mike looks around in confusion.

“Smith!” he calls out to another worker. “Did you see where Peter went?”

The worker points to the back and she curses when they see Riley running. He chances a look back before he shoves through the double doors.

Taking her gun out of her holster, she yells for him to stop but he keeps running, causing her to chase after him.

As soon as she makes it through the doors she holds up her gun and shouts again, but he only runs faster. The docks are filled with people and she growls because it means she can’t use the threat of shooting him if he doesn’t stop.

Riley knocks into someone and almost falls but he quickly rights himself and continues to run. A bead of sweat trickles down her neck as she pushes herself to move faster. She’s gaining on him quick, he’s older than her and out of shape, but just as she reaches out to grab the back of his shirt, her steps falter and she trips.

Her hands reach out in front of her to brace her fall and she hisses as they scrape across the wood. Letting out a grunt, she pushes herself up into her knees, but before she has a chance to look over her injuries, there’s a yell in the distance and her eyes snap up.

Riley has been tackled to the ground and is struggling to get free as she scrambles to her feet and rushes over. Her heart drops into her stomach when she sees _him_ yanking Riley up from the ground, a firm hold on the back of Riley’s shirt so he can’t break free.

“What the fuck, man! Let me go!”

“I think not,” _he_ growls.

Shivers run over her at the sound of his voice, but she quickly breaks herself out of her trance and grabs the handcuffs from her back pocket.

“Riley Bears, I’m here to take you in.”

“You bitch!” Riley hisses.

_He_ snarls as he reaches up and yanks Riley’s head back by his hair. “Apologize to the lady!”

Riley keeps his lips sealed until _he_ yanks harder. “Ah, okay, okay. I’m sorry!”

Shaking her head, she walks up to Riley with the handcuffs out, quickly slapping them on his wrists before she yanks him to her and forces him to sit on the ground. She can feel _his_ eyes on her, but she refuses to look up. Her hands shake as she takes her phone out to call her contact at the police to pick Riley up and she’s not sure if it’s from the adrenaline coursing through her veins or because for the first time in weeks, _he’s_ close enough to touch. The entire time she’s on the phone, _he_ stands there, right hand gripping the collar of his shirt with his eyes on her.

Hanging up the phone, she clears her throat and attempts to make her voice steady. “The cops will be here any minute, you don’t have to wait.”

Her statement goes unanswered and they both just stand there in silence. She lets out a deep sigh and puts her phone in her back pocket.

“You know,” Riley calls out from the ground. “You could let me go and I could give you money.”

Emma rolls her eyes and shoves at his shoulder.

“If I were you, I’d keep my mouth shut. Unless you want to add bribery to the list of felonies you’re looking at.”

Riley grumbles and hangs his head. From the corner of her eye she sees _him_ lean against a park bench as he crosses his arms over his chest. He has on his running sneakers, a pair of black basketball shorts and a long sleeved, white, cotton shirt. Even though everything in her screams to look at him, she busies herself with checking out her hand.

It’s got some scratches and is a little bloodied, but nothing too serious.

“Your hand,” _his_ voice mumbles. “It’s hurt.”

She drops it to her side and shakes her head as she mumbles, “It’s fine.”

A slight gasp leaves her mouth as he grabs her wrist to lift her left hand back up. She didn’t even know he moved and the feel of his touch causes her to burst on the inside.

“No, it’s not.”

He turns her hand over and she finally chances a look up at him. A lump forms in her throat when she sees his face, there are dark circles under his eyes and his skin looks pale, his beard is longer than she has ever seen, which makes the tinge of red in it even more visible and his hair messier than normal.

Her brow goes together when she notices his lip is split and there’s a slight bruise on his cheekbone. She wants to ask him what happened, but bites her tongue to stop herself.

It’s none of her business... not anymore.

Tears threaten to cloud her eyes as he places her hand on his prosthetic before he pulls what looks like a flask from his pocket. She ignores the way her insides heat up as she watches him open it with his teeth before he spills it over her hand.

“Gah!” she hisses out in pain. “What the hell is that?”

“It’s rum,” he states like it’s the most normal thing in the world. “A bloody waste of it.”

“You drink rum on your runs now?”

His eyes finally connect with hers and her mouth drops open. They are darker than she remembers and they look haunted. She swallows and they continue to stare at each other before he tosses the flask on the ground and pulls out a small towel. He begins to pat her hand dry before she pulls away to do it herself. They feel of him touching her is too much and she can’t handle it.

He’s so close, when he speaks, she can feel his breath on her face, and his voice is so hollow, it causes her chest to ache. “Can we talk?”

“Yes,” Riley calls out, effectively breaking the spell they are under. “why don’t you two go talk? I’ll just go for a walk to give you some privacy.’”

He tries to stand and they both reach out at the same time to shove him back down.

“You’re not going anywhere,” she hisses and Riley lets out a sigh.

The sound of a car door being shut causes her to look up and her shoulders sag with relief when she sees the officers walk up. It gives her the excuse to ignore _his_ request of talking and gives her the distraction she needs. The policemen take Riley into the back of their car and she gives her statement. Her body goes stiff as they turn to _him_ and ask his name.

“Killian Jones.”

She hasn’t heard his name in over two weeks because she was afraid it would make what happened real, and she was right, hearing it starts a panic in her and she starts to breathe heavy unconsciously. The officer starts to ask him more questions when she finally steps forward.

“Joe, can you do me a favor and leave him out… say it was an unknown citizen that left before you guys arrived or something like that?”

Joe looks at Killian than back at her before he gives a nod and puts his note pad away. “Sure thing, Emma. I’ll call you when the reports done.”

She gives him a slight nod and the officers get in their car and pull away. It’s then she realizes they are left alone and she starts to panic again.

Clearing her throat while she fiddles with the towel in her hands, she motions with her head and says, “Thanks for that.”

Killian just gives her a nod before he reaches down to pick up his flask and put it back in his pocket. She wants to ask him why he has a flask with him at nine thirty in the morning but something in her tells her she really doesn’t want to know the answer.

The back of her hand wipes across her forehead as she struggles with what to say to him. It’s always been so easy to speak to each other, but now everything is so tense, she’s finding it hard to even breathe.

“How did you even know who he was?”

He lets out a sigh and scratches his ear. “I recognized him from the stake out we did a couple weeks ago.”

She can feel tears trying to form in her eyes so she looks to the ground. They were out on a date when Colin called and asked her to trail Riley for him because he was busy with another perp. Killian insisted on coming, he said he was curious about her work, but she suspected it was because he was worried about her. He knows she can take care of herself, but he’s always been a little over protective. They spent three hours in her car together, he had her laughing to the point of tears and was able to pick things out she missed herself because she was distracted by his presence.

“I saw him running, then saw you… figured I could help,” he finishes with a motion of his hand.

She presses her lips together and hands him his towel. “Well, thanks.”

He gives her a nod and they stand there in an awkward silence for a few moments, neither knowing what to say. Emotions start to overcome her and she’s struck with the strong urge to run, so she turns to walk away, but she’s stopped when he takes hold of her arm.

“Wait…”

Shocks run through her at the feel of his touch and she has to hide her gasp, it’s too much, she pulls her arm away and looks over his shoulder, refusing to even look him in the eye.

“What?”

“Emma,” she turns to look out at the water at the sound of her name because it’s also something she can’t handle. “Can we talk?”

“There’s nothing to talk about.”

He snorts and shakes his head. “We spend months together and all of a sudden you decide you don’t want to be with me anymore?”

“That’s usually what happens in a break up.”

Her eyes stay on the waterfront as he continues to speak.

“Then why can’t you look at me?” She presses her lips together but keeps her eyes away. “I think it’s because you and I both know what you said was complete rubbish. I’m not buying it for one second.”

“That’s not my problem.”

He takes a step forward and she feels her body start to shake. “Ah, but it is. So tell me, what is it?”

Her jaw clenches and she forces herself not to cry.

His voice gets low and it catches just at the end, “I think it’s because you can see a future… a happy one, with your boy… and with me.”

Flashes of that happy future she craves go through her mind. Them smiling every day, whispered words of love, all three of them being a family…

But she knows it’s only a fantasy. People don’t love her, they only leave her.

When she doesn’t speak, Killian lets out a huff and takes a step back.

“When are you going to stop running from things that make you happy?”

Her eyes turn hard before she snaps her head over toward him, his face is filled with so much anguish, it almost makes her stop, but she doesn’t.

Voice dripping with malice, she takes a step forward. “Who says I am? Just because you think you made me happy doesn’t mean it was true.”

It truly pains her to act this way, she wanted a clean break, she didn’t want to be mean. But he isn’t making it easy like he should have been, he’s trying to _understand_ things and she doesn’t know how to deal with it.

His jaw clenches as he stares at her for a good second before he shakes his head and runs his hand down his face.

“Keep telling yourself that, love,” he mumbles.

Keeping her face blank, she brushes past him before she does or says something stupid. She’s a couple steps away when he calls out to her again.

“Nice shirt.”

Her body goes stiff and her steps falter as her breathing starts to exhilarate. She was in such a rush to get out that morning that she didn’t bother changing, just threw on a pair of shorts and left. She completely forgot the shirt she fell asleep in, the same shirt she’s slept in for the past three nights…

His gray Henley.

* * *

* * *

Killian takes another pull from his bottle of rum as he stares out into the night sky. It’s been almost three weeks since Emma ended things between them and it’s still as fresh as it was the day that it happened. He doesn’t know why he comes up to the roof every night, it always pains him when he remembers their first date, but he can’t seem to stay away.

It’s the one place he feels close to her… the one place that’s theirs.

She told him she never wanted to be with him and for a long time, he believed that. He spent countless hours lying awake at night wondering how he could have misread a situation so badly, he thought they were happy. When he still couldn’t figure it out, he started to drink again. The rum always numbed him, but eventually that didn’t work, either. He tried to go back to his old ways, when he lost Milah, it was easy to take a woman to bed, because he would lose himself in the pleasure.

But this time is different.

The first time a women flirted with him after the breakup, it felt wrong, but he pushed through it, thinking it was because he had been rusty. Then she touched his stomach when he walked by and it made him physically ill. He had to actually run to the bathroom because he was so sick, he threw up all the contents in his stomach.

He knew then this heartbreak was unlike all his others.

It wasn’t until he started a few fights when he was out that he started to feel something again. Emma never wanted him so he took his rage out on unsuspecting patrons of the pub. But then he got to actually speak to her that day on the docks and see her up close, not from afar. She looked like she lost some weight, her eyes were sunken into her head from what he assumes was exhaustion, and she was wearing one of his shirts.

She lied.

The reason she broke up with him wasn’t because she didn’t want to be with him, it was because of something else, but she refused to tell him the truth.

He’s not sure if that revelation makes things easier or worse. The thought of her going through the same pain he is…

Killian shakes his head and takes another tug from the bottle.

He’s in love with her. He doesn’t know exactly when it happened, it might have been since the moment he saw her, but he knows that he _does_ love her. He’s known for a while but never told her, so he would say it without _really_ saying it. All those texts, the confessions of what he was really thinking, how he couldn’t stop kissing her, he told her without ever actually saying it because he didn’t want to frighten her away…

But in the end it didn’t matter.

When he takes another sip of the rum, his lip stings slightly but he ignores it, the pain is nothing compared to the emptiness he’s feeling on the inside.

Letting out a sigh, he runs his hand through his hair. The only good thing in all of this is that Emma hasn’t taken Henry away from him. He still gets to spend time with the lad even if his mother refuses to speak to him. At first it was painful, spending time with Henry only reminded him of what he lost, but then he tried to picture a life without Emma _or_ Henry and it almost made him collapse.

He’s grown quite fond of the lad and could see himself wanting the him as his son, something that used to make him happy, until Emma threw in his face the cold reminder that he _wasn’t_ his father. Henry isn’t his and that hurt him just as much as her leaving.

She’s so stubborn.

He’s known that for a long time, but he never understood exactly how stubborn she could be until all of this. He wants to fight for her, every day he wants to bang on her door and try to talk logic into her. But deep down, he knows that will only make it worse.

She’ll close herself off even more and he’ll lose any chance at ever being with her again. If she would only just tell him the truth, he will do everything in his power to fix it…

The scrape of the door being opened knocks him out of his thoughts and he looks back in confusion because he’s never known anyone else to come up to the roof since he discovered it.

Killian’s mouth pops open when he sees Emma walking through. She doesn’t see him at first, she’s too busy looking around, but when her eyes finally land on his, she stops walking.

He turns to face her and watches her eyes go wide before she swallows.

“Um,” she starts. “Sorry. I was… I was just looking for Henry. Have you seen him?”

His shoulders sag, of course she isn’t up there to see him, before he turns to look back over the ledge and leans against it. “Haven’t seen him.”

He takes another pull of his rum and waits for the sounds of her walking away, but they never come. Instead, he nearly jumps out of his skin when she speaks again, because he doesn’t realize she’s moved closer.

“Why are you up here?”

She walks up to stand next to him and he hates how badly he wants to pull her into his arms.

With a big smirk, he motions to the night and answers with a sarcastic tone, “Why to take in the lovely scenery, of course.”

When she doesn’t say anything, he rests his elbows on the ledge and waits for her to leave. But she doesn’t, she just stands there next to him in silence and it just about kills him. To ease the tension, he offers her the bottle.

She stares at it for a few seconds before she looks up at him. “Is rum your solution to everything?”

He cracks what he hopes is another sarcastic grin, but something tells him it’s more broken. “Well, it certainly does help.”

When he offers her the bottle again, she takes it and he has to look away as her throat muscles move, because he remembers exactly how those muscles feel when they are around him. Emma puts the bottle back on the ledge and lets out a sigh. Silence falls over them again and he wonders why she hasn’t left yet, because that day on the docks she was anything but willing to stand there and chat with him. He tries to stomp down the flicker of hope that rises in him that this time may be different.

“What happened to your face?”

His nails pick at the bottle and his jaw clenches. He wants to ignore her, wants to tell her it’s none of her business, but he can’t.

_Always have to be a gentleman, you git._

With his eyes still on the bottle, he mumbles, “Got into a fight.”

“Was it worth it?”

He remembers when the fist connected with his face that the pain it caused let him forget about the pain of losing her for half a second.

“Aye,” he whispers. “It was worth it.”

She lets out another sigh and he sees from the corner of his eye her brush her hands through her hair.

“Killian, I’m sorry,” his body goes stiff. “I never meant to hurt you.”

With a dry chuckle, he shakes his head. “Could have fooled me.”

“I’m being honest.”

His head snaps over to glare at her. The anger that courses through him is unwavering.

“Oh, _now_ we’re being honest.” Her mouth drops open before she looks out into the night sky but he grabs her arm. “No, look at me. Look me in the eye and tell me what you said was true, that you never wanted to be with me.”

He can see her struggling to find the words and steps forward.

“Tell me what to do, Emma,” he begs in a whisper. “Please. I can’t do this anymore.”

Tears make her eyes glisten but she shakes her head and pulls her arm away. He lets out a dejected sigh and runs his hand through his hair.

“You really don’t care about me at all do you?”

Her eyes go hard. “Of course I care!”

Killian shakes his head. “No you don’t. If you did, you would tell me the truth. But you continue to lie to me and pretend that this isn’t killing you as much as it’s killing me.”

“Whatever,” she huffs and shakes her head. “I was trying to be nice, but clearly, that’s not an option so just forget it.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t really pay much to pleasantries when a person is lying straight to my face.” He motions back to the door. ”You can go now.”

He turns back to the ledge and clenches his jaw.

“Did you seriously just order me away?”

“Shouldn’t be too hard for you, love. It’s not like you haven’t spent the last few weeks doing your best to avoid me.” She stutters and he quickly turns back to her. “Why are you really here, Swan? Was it just to hurt me some more? You hate me that much?”

A flash of hurt crosses her face before it morphs back into anger and her jaw locks. “I told you. I was looking for Henry.”

“He’s not here,” he snaps, louder than he expected. “Your boy doesn’t ever come up here.”

Her brow goes together. “But he sent me… wait. Does Henry know you come up here?”

“Aye.”

They stare at each other for a couple seconds before their eyes go wide. Both of their heads whip over to the entrance just in time to see Henry push the grate away and pull the door shut.

“Henry!”

“Lad!”

Emma and Killian run over to the door but it’s too late, by the time they get to it, it’s locked tight and no matter how hard they try to pull on the handle, it doesn’t budge.

“Henry!” Emma yells as she bangs on the door. “Open this door right now!”

“No!” his muffled voice calls from the other side.

“Lad, listen to your mother. Open the door!”

“You two need to talk, I’m tired of this! You miss each other and it’s making you both miserable.”

With a growl, she steps forward. “Henry Daniel Swan, open this door or you’re grounded for a month!”

“Fine,” his voice calls out from the other side of the door. “I’ll be grounded as long as you two go back to normal!”

She starts to immediately search her pockets and as if he can see what he’s going, Henry speaks again, “You left your phone in the apartment. You can’t call anyone to come get you which makes me the only person that knows you two are up here.”

Emma looks at him with wide eyes, he curses under his breath because he knows his own phone is down in his flat, he’s made a habit of not bringing it with him when he comes to the roof for fear he might do something stupid like call her while he’s drunk.

Banging on the door himself, he hollers out, “Lad, listen to me. This isn’t the way to do this… remember what I told you the other night? That’s not going to change.” He can feel Emma’s eyes on him but he ignores her. “Now, just let us out.”

“No. I’m going back down stairs. I’ll be up in a couple hours to check on you.”

They can hear him walk down the steps and try one last time to call out for him, but when the sound of the door to the stairwell closing rings out, they know he’s not coming back. Emma lets out a groan and slides to the ground while Killian stomps back over to the ledge. He snatches up his bottle of rum and takes a large gulp.

It’s going to be one hell of a night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> now excuse me while I go hide so you can't murder me.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here it is!!! Chapter 13. The week didn’t take too long to go by, did it?? Hehe you guys are so awesome. i love hearing from you and answering your questions, thank you all so much <3 double line breaks mean change of POV
> 
> as always, a special thank you to Alex for her brilliance

Killian leans his back against the ledge of the roof with his arms crossed and a bored look on his face as he watches Emma try to open the door.

It’s been fifteen minutes since Henry left and they haven’t spoken a word to each other since. She gives another tug and lets out a groan before she turns back to him, her face hard.

“You could help, you know.”

He shrugs. “What would you propose I do? Try to open a door we both know only opens from the inside?”

She throws him a glare before she tries the door again. When it still refuses to open, she gives it a swift kick, only to jump back in pain.

He rushes to her in concern. “You alright?”

She shoots him a glare, shoving him away as she limps over to the ledge and picks up his bottle of rum. He walks up to join her and they stand there in silence for a few moments before she hands him back the bottle.

“What did you tell him the other night?”

Her voice is low, if he wasn’t waiting for her to speak, he might not have heard her, but he was. His eyes stay down on the bottle in his hand and he shrugs.

“I told him that just because you and I are…” he trails off with a deep breath and shakes his head. “That didn’t mean he and I couldn’t be in each other’s lives... I’ll always be there for him.”

He can feel her eyes on him as he drinks his rum and places it back down, but keeps his eyes glued to the street below him. There are cars driving by, people on the sidewalks, and they all seem so… _happy_. He knows that’s crazy, there’s no way he can tell what they are feeling, but everyone seems happier than he is lately.

“You shouldn’t make promises to him you can’t keep.”

His head whips around to her. “Do you plan on keeping him from me?”

When she doesn’t answer right away his heart starts to pound. Everything in him wants to tell her she can’t, beg her not to, but it’s not his place. She’s the lads mother and she’s allowed to keep her son away from any person she wants, even one that loves him as much as he does.

“No, it would kill him if I did.”

He lets out a sigh of relief and looks back out at the night sky. He doesn’t know how long they stand there staring out into nothing and sharing his rum, but the air is thick. There is so much he wants to say, but he doesn’t know where to start. So he waits for her to make the first move, like he has since the beginning.

“I don’t think it was your fault,” she says softly. When he looks at her in confusion she begins again. “What happened with Henry, it wasn’t your fault. He told me what happened… He’s always been overzealous when it comes with helping. I think he wants to prove he can do things. Then he gets excited and well, you saw.”

Flashes of that day go through his mind and he cringes.

He sees Henry walking down with a big box, sees his foot catch on the steps, hears himself yell out and rush to try and catch him before he falls.

He remembers how he held Henry close to him while the boy cried in pain and when he saw the ankle immediately swell, he knew he had to get him to the hospital. He remembers how he wiped the boy’s tears away and promised him his mother would be there soon.

Killian shakes his head free of those thoughts and sniffs. “So, what does that mean?”

Sighing, she takes the bottle from him. “Does it have to mean anything?”

“That’s it then? You say it’s over so it’s over?”

“It wasn’t serious.”

Her words sting him more than the ones she spoke at the hospital. She sounds so cold and hard, like what they had meant nothing to her.

“You’re lying,” he hisses out.

“Killian…”

“Why won’t you just tell me the truth, Emma? What changed?” She starts to walk away from him and he catches her arm, tugging her back. “It started days before. You were distant, I could see it in your eyes. I thought you would tell me in your own time—”

Her eyes are glassy with tears as she shakes her head and tries to pull her arm away. “What does it matter now?”

“It matters because it’s the reason you left!”

Her mouth open and closes a few times but no words come out.

“What is it? The truth!”

She shakes her head and tries to pull free again but he tightens his grip.

“Just tell me!”

“Because I’m in love with you!” she screams.

He feels as though his heart stops and he takes a step back, dropping her arm. Never did he dream that those would be the words that came out of her mouth.

“And you’re going to leave,” she chokes out. “Everybody leaves me.”

“Have I given you any indication that I was going to leave you?” he asks in a whisper.

She sniffles and her chin starts to quiver. “It doesn’t matter. You will, eventually. It’s just easier in the long run if I go first.”

They both stand there in silence as Killian looks her over. She’s finally told him the truth and it breaks his heart. His beautiful Swan has been hurt so badly in her past she believes loving him will only lead to more heartache.

He takes a step forward and she looks up at him as a single tear runs down her face. “I’m not going to leave you.”

She shakes her head. “Something will happen. You _will_ leave, there’s nothing keeping you here…”

“You keep me here, Emma,” he starts. “You and Henry.”

She lets out a dry chuckle and rolls her eyes. “Yeah, and why is that?”

“Because I love you, too.”

He smothers the gasp she lets out, pulling her head up and pressing his lips firmly to hers. They both whimper and he has to wrap his arms around her waist to keep her upright when she collapses into him. Her tears drip onto his cheeks and when they finally pull away, he wipes them away with his fingers.

“I’m so sorry,” she cries against his lips and he shakes his head. “I was scared… I didn’t know what to do.”

He kisses her and pulls her tighter against him. “Talk to me, Emma. That’s all you have to do. I’m not going to leave you. I’ve been barely able to keep away from you since the moment we met, do you think I could survive without you? I don’t know how I managed all these weeks.”

She lets out a watery chuckle. “Me neither. I’ve missed you so much.”

His heart sores at her words and he kisses her again. They begin to move and he moans when she shoves him back against a wall. His hand is in her hair and his prosthetic is on her ass while hers run over him. His body responds to every touch and it’s not until then he truly realizes how much he’s missed her. Feeling her in his arms again makes him feel whole, complete, and he vows then and there in his mind to never know what it’s like to not touch her again.

Her hands move to the top of his sweat pants and begin to pull.

“Love…”

“I need you,” she pleads into his neck.

Her hand glides over his erection and he lurches forward, capturing her lips once more before he flips them and presses her against the wall. They both fumble to strip from the waist down before he lifts her up, her legs wrapping around his waist before he plunges himself into her and they both cry out.

The feeling of Emma around him without barrier is better than he could have imagined, the warmth of her silky walls almost tipping him over the edge on the spot, and he has to make a point to concentrate so he doesn’t embarrass himself.

When she tightens her legs around him in encouragement, he starts to move slowly and mumbles into her neck, “You feel amazing. You always feel so _bloody_ amazing.”

His lips and teeth nip and kiss at her neck while her hands grip his biceps.

“God, Killian. I missed you,” she moans.

Groaning, he thrusts into her harder. “Missed you.”

Their moans echo in the night along with the sound of their skin slapping against each other. He wants it to last, but it’s been so long his control is slipping.

He pulls his head up from her neck and moves up to her lips. “Touch yourself, Emma. I want you with me.”

She lets out a whimper and her arm sneaks in between them. When her fingers connect with her nerves they both groan and he ups his pace.

“You’re my everything,” he pants against her lips. “I love you, Emma.”

Her muscles tighten around him and she peaks with a loud curse. “Fuck!”

He struggles to hold her upright, his whole body trembling when she collapses against him. Eventually, her hands move up his arms and into the back of his hair as she leans forward, poking her tongue out to lick his pulse before she shifts up to nip at his earlobe.

“I love you, too.”

Her words against his ear are all it takes for his edge to crumble, and he finds his release inside her with a deep groan, bliss washing over him as his body spasms in its aftershocks. She squeals when he almost drops her, adjusting her in his arms with a chuckle. They eventually untangle from each other for long enough to re-dress before he crumbles to the ground, pulling her with him and placing her in his lap.

She hums as he buries his face in her neck and holds her tight against his body. For the first time in weeks, she’s back in his arms and he feels at peace.

Her fingers trace his prosthetic and her voice is small when she finally speaks. “I’m sorry.”

Rubbing his thumb against the back of her hand in what he hopes is a reassuring manner, he kisses the side of her neck and places his chin on her shoulder.

“If we’re going to move past this, Emma, you can’t keep apologizing. I’ve already forgiven you, you just have to forgive yourself.”

“I hurt you.”

She sniffles and he reaches up to take her chin in between his fingers.

“Emma—”

“Killian, I don’t know how to do this. The last time I was in a relationship it was with Henry’s father. He gave me all these promises, told me he loved me and then he left me. I believed in him and he let me down.”

“Hey, I don’t intend to let you down.”

She gives him a small smile and reaches up to cup his jaw. “I can’t promise you that I won’t freak out again, but I can promise you that I will try my hardest to talk to you before I do. I’m going to choose to see the best in you.”

His thumb brushes against her chin as he murmurs back, “And I with you.”

They lean in and kiss softly before she snuggles into his chest. A smile graces his lips before he pulls her tight against him, he has her back in his arms again and that’s all that matters. He knows there will be tough times ahead, with her walls so high, and her feeling so comfortable with them, but he’ll be there to break them down as long as it takes, he just has to make her believe that.

She starts to play with the charms on his necklace, like she always does, and an idea strikes him. Reaching up, he takes the second chain he’s wearing and pulls it over his neck.

“Here,” he whispers. “I want you to have this.”

Lifting her head, she looks at the ring on the end of the chain and her eyes go wide.

“Whoa,” she starts bringing her hands up. “Whooa.”

He rolls his eyes. “Calm down, Swan. I’m not proposing.”

She meets his gaze and gives him an apologetic smile as he takes a deep breath and holds the chain up.

“This ring belonged to a far better man than I… my brother Liam.” Her lips part and her eyes widen. “He gave it to me a long time ago. It’s the only thing I have left of his, but I want you to have it.”

“Killian, no. I can’t accept this,” she says with a shake of her head.

He gives her a smile and places the ring and the chain in her hand. “Aye, you can. He gave it to me to protect me and that’s why I’m giving it to you, to protect you. Whenever you are having doubts, I want you to look at this ring and know that it is my symbol for you.”

“Symbol?” Her voice is soft and her eyes are glassy.

“A symbol to show you that I won’t leave, a symbol that I love you.”

Her lips turn up softly before she leans forward and kisses him. When they pull apart, Emma takes the chain and puts it around her neck.

“I love you, too.”

He feels like his heart is bubbling over with joy as he pulls her in for another kiss. They are silent for a few moments, both enjoying the feeling of being in each other’s arms after so long before he hears her chuckle.

His lips move to her forehead. “What’s so funny, love?”

“What are we going to do about Henry?”

They both start to laugh and he leans his head back against the wall. “I don’t know, Swan. Bake him a cake?” She smacks his chest and he lets out another laugh. “I jest... Perhaps you can go a little easy on him though? He did have the best intentions.”

She hums and wraps her arms around his waist.

“Fine. But he still needs to be grounded, two weeks no XBox or cell phone.”

“Oh, come on. Two weeks might be a little much, don’t you think?” She picks her head up and looks at him, eyebrows raised. “Hear me out. He knew that we were both suffering and refusing to do anything about it. I agree he should be punished, but perhaps just a week? Two weeks without electronics for an eleven-year-old is like an eternity.”

She lets out a sigh and sits up, running her hands through her wild hair. “Why do I have visions of future arguments where I’m the bad guy and you’re the good guy?”

“He’s your boy, Swan. Whatever you choose for punishments have nothing to do with me.”

He watches as she bites her lip and tucks a piece of hair behind her ear.

“Henry loves you, Killian,” he looks at her in wonder. “He wouldn’t have done this if he didn’t. I’m not asking you to be his father. But if we want to make this work, I have to let you into his life, too.”

The smile that forms on his lips is so large, his cheeks start to hurt. “I’ll be happy with whatever part I have in Henry’s life, as long as I do have one.”

Their lips meet, but the flare in his groin makes him pull back. Every time he’s with her, he has to calm himself like he’s a horny teenager who can’t hold a simple conversation without getting turned on by her.

But she seems to have other ideas, and shifts in his lap. He hisses and she pulls back with a sexy smirk. “I think I missed your turn around time the most.”

He rubs his nose against her own as she wraps her arms around his shoulders. “You just want me for my body.”

She pulls her head back an inch and arches her eyebrow up at him. “Are you complaining?”

He licks his lips and leans forward. “Not at all.”

She giggles as he kisses her again and he groans against her lips when she rubs herself against him. They hold themselves back from making love again, but can’t help but tease each other every once in a while.

There are multiple times as they sit there holding each other, that he finds he wants to pinch himself, because he’s terrified he’s going to wake to find this all a dream and he’s really alone in his cold bed.

Henry finally comes up to open the door an hour after they’ve reconciled. His face is masked with fear until he sees them smiling and holding hands, and when they walk into the stairwell with him he throws his arms around them both. Killian has to hold back the tears that prick his eyes as he squeezes the two most important people in the world close to him.

As they walk down the stairs, Henry turns to them with a big smile. “Does this mean Killian can stop sneaking out in the morning now?”

He can’t help but chuckle while Emma stares at her lad with her jaw dropped.

“When… how…” she stutters and Henry smiles.

“Please, I’ve known for a while. It’s just like when you two were kissing when you were _just friends_ …” the lad explains with a roll of his eyes as they enter the elevator. “You guys are so completely unaware of things around when you’re together.”

Killian squeezes her hand and she looks down at her feet with a slight blush.

“But also,” Henry continues as they walk out into the hall. “A couple weeks ago Killian left his shoes in the dining room. I saw them when I went to the bathroom, but by the time I woke up, they were gone.”

Emma rolls her eyes as they get to her front door.

A wave of unease washes over him. He doesn’t want to leave her, he’s spent weeks without her and the thought of going into his dark, cold, empty flat makes him almost sick.

His thoughts are interrupted when he feels a tug on his hand. He looks up to see Emma standing before him in front of her opened door with her brows pinched together, Henry disappeared inside.

“What’s wrong?” Her face drops and he can see her breathing start to pick up. “Do you not want to—”

Pulling her toward him, he fuses his lips to hers, relishing in the sensation of her body melting into his.

“I want to more than anything, love.” A bright smile comes across her lips and he starts to walk them into her flat, kicking her door closed behind him. “Even if you tried to say I couldn’t, you would have woken up to find me in your bed tomorrow morning.”

She giggles and it’s the most beautiful sound in the world. “And have your wicked way with me? I thought you were a gentleman?”

He tickles her side and smiles. “I’m always a gentleman, Swan.”

She swats his hand away as they walk into her living room to find Henry standing outside of his room. Though there is a smile on his face, Killian can tell he’s uneasy and he tilts his head. “What’s vexing you, lad?”

“How long am I grounded for?”

Killian presses his lips together and looks over at Emma. She looks back at him with a sigh before she turns to her son.

She crosses her arms over her chest. “A week, no XBox or cell phone.”

Henry’s shoulders sag and Killian walks up to him. Though Emma told him she wants to allow him to be in Henry’s life more, he’s still going to take it slow. Patting the lad on the shoulder, he places a kiss on his forehead, something he started when they spent time together after he and Emma broke up, and walks into her bedroom to give them time to talk.

* * *

* * *

Emma closes her bedroom door and turns to see Killian standing at the foot of her bed with his brow knitted together.

“Hey,” she whispers. “What’s wrong?”

A slight twinge of panic goes through her and she can’t help but think he’s regretting them getting back together. His eyes move to hers and he gives her a sad smile before he looks back at the bed. She bites her lip and rings her hands together when she sees what he’s staring at. Laying in the middle of her bed is his pillow that she cuddles with every night, with his shirt on top of it along with the Captain Hook doll he won her on their second date.

Speaking softly, she yanks it off the bed while her cheeks burn. “Yeah, I, um… found this last week.”

Her eyes stay on the shirt as she crimps it in her hands. It still smells like him, and it’s helped her sleep on the nights her nightmares tried to keep her awake. Guilt washes over her again when she thinks about the pain she’s put them both through. Her gut told her from the beginning that Killian would never hurt her and she didn’t listen to it, she let her past fears blind her because she couldn’t take the chance that she was wrong.

She squeals slightly when Killian grabs the shirt and yanks it toward him, pulling her along with it. He wraps his left arm around her and cups her cheek with his right hand.

“Might I get it back?”

She bites her lip and shakes her head with a smile. “No. It’s mine now.”

“Pirate,” he whispers against her lips before he kisses her.

Her arms wrap around his shoulders and he lifts her off the ground before he places her down onto the bed. They make love softly and slowly, and she swears she’s never going to deny herself his love again. When they finish, they both lay on their sides and face each other, her fingers reaching up to brush over his too long beard while his thumb rubs her hip bone.

“I missed you,” she whispers.

He hums and leans forward to kiss the tip of her nose. “I missed you, too, love.”

Her hand moves down his chest and wraps around his torso to run up and down his back. Her fingers brush over his scars, red and angry, and she remembers when she first saw them, almost unable to contain her anger. They aren’t normal scars for a person to have. They almost look like someone took a whip to him, multiple times. But she’s never asked, she knows they both have things in their past either doesn’t know about and she trusts him to tell her when he feels comfortable.

As if reading her mind, he speaks in a soft tone, “I’ve had them for as long as I can remember… but how I got them? I have no idea.”

She spreads her fingers out and presses firmly on his back as her body moves closer and she presses a soft kiss to the scar on his cheek before she pulls her left hand out from under her body and holds it up to his face.

“Do you see this scar here?” She shows him the white crescent moon shaped scar on her left palm. “I have no idea how I got it. It’s almost like I just woke up one morning and it was there, and that would be okay, normally, but every time I look at it… it’s like I _want_ to know how I got it. Almost like it’s important.” Her eyes move up to see him staring at her intently. “I know it’s not the same, I just…”

She trails off, feeling a little embarrassed over her stupid story, but then he leans forward and presses his lips to it. Her breathing picks up as he looks up at her through his eyelashes, his mouth still on her palm.

His voice is husky and she shivers when she feels his breath across her skin. “I’m sure whatever it is, love, you’ll remember one day.”

They end up having sex one more time before they pass out from their lack of sleep over the past couple weeks.

The next morning, neither of them wake up until almost noon, and that’s only because Henry finally gives in and wakes them up, complaining about how bored he is since he’s not allowed to play his games or talk on his phone. It’s when they are eating breakfast together that she realizes how refreshed she feels and it’s because for the first time in weeks, she slept soundly and nightmare free.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NOW before everyone freaks out... take a deep breath... Emma is a woman in her early thirties who has made it known that her relationships have never gone past a one night stand. She is on birth control! :D I had a sentence where he asked her about a condom but I felt it dampened the mood ;-)


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i love you all so much, every time i get a reblog/like/kudos/review it makes my heart go crazy. when i started this crazy ride, i had no idea i would get this amount of feedback and it’s all thanks to you guys. now, prepare yourself for come fluff!

Two weeks after they get back together, Emma is walking down the hall toward her apartment while she fingers the ring around her neck. Killian hasn’t answered any of her calls since the morning and when she stopped by the bar, Barry told her he called off. 

Panic set in after she heard that information.

Why hasn’t he answered any of her calls? Why did he call out of work? Her head is telling her to go into her apartment and let it go. It probably wasn’t serious… but then she hears a voice in her head… his voice.

_ “Talk to me, Emma. That’s all you have to do.” _

She lets out a sigh and walks over to his door instead of going through her own and knocks.

“Killian?”

When she doesn’t hear any movement, her hand goes back to the ring around her neck again.

_ “A symbol to show you that I won’t leave, because I love you.” _

She takes a deep breath and tries the doorknob, happy but also surprised to find it unlocked. She reminds herself to yell at him later for leaving it that way. When she walks in, she sees his jacket is hanging up on the hook by the door and his wallet, keys, and cell phone are on the counter in the kitchen.

_ Well that explains why he didn’t answer any of my calls. _

“Killian?”

There’s a groan from the bedroom and she instantly puts her hand to the gun on her hip. Keeping her senses on high alert, she walks slowly to the room, but just before she pushes the door open, there’s a cough. Scrunching her face together, she goes in.

“Oh, baby!” she gasps out as she rushes over. 

Killian is lying on his bed, covers wrapped around his shoulders, looking like death. She kneels on the floor next to him and runs her hand over his forehead, flinching at how clammy and warm his skin feels. 

His eyes flutter open as he lifts his head. “Swan, is that you, love?”

Her lips tug up into a smile. “It’s me. What wrong?”

Letting out another groan, he closes his eyes and drops his head back down onto the bed. “I’m bloody dying.”

“I don’t think it’s that serious,” she snorts as she wipes his hair away from his forehead. “Did you eat something?”

He shakes his head and nuzzles his face into her palm. 

“Wasn’t feeling too well this morning after you left, I went for a run and then it all hit me. The gods must have sent you to come save me.”

Her eyes roll at her over dramatic boyfriend but the smile stays on her face.

“What’s bothering you?”

“Everything,” he groans. “Bloody sore throat, can’t breathe, my head feels like it’s about to explode, and my entire body aches, but not in the good way. Swan, help!”

She bites back her giggle at his whining and rubs her thumb across his scruff. 

“I think you have the flu, babe. I told you to stay away from Larry yesterday.”

He lets out another groan and wraps himself tighter into his blankets, but when she stands, his hand shoots out to grab her wrist.

“Will you take care of me?”

She kneels back down with a chuckle and covers his hand with her own. 

“I will. But I have to go get you some medicine, and I have to make sure Henry is okay.” He attempts to sit up and she has to put her hands on his shoulders to stop him. “What are you doing? You need to stay in bed and get your rest.”

“I want to stay with you, let’s go to your flat, I don’t want to be here, it’s bloody freezing.”

“It’s cold because you have a fever,” she explains as she sits on the edge of the bed.

He lets out another groan and moves to rest his head on her lap. “But I don’t want to spend the night away from you.”

Her hand runs through his hair as he snuggles closer to her.

“How about Henry and I stay here tonight?” He cracks an eye open and looks up at her. “This way you don’t have to move and I can take care of you.”

His lips twitch. “I love you.”

Her cheeks heat up and her heart starts to race. Every time he says that, it’s like it’s the first time and she can hardly believe how lucky she is to have found him. She leans down and places a kiss on his warm forehead.

“I love you, too.” 

* * *

Emma pushes her way through the crowd of people, she didn’t plan on coming to the bar, but Killian is working and since Henry decided to spend the night with his friends, she decided to surprise him by keeping him company instead of sitting home by herself. 

It’s been two months since they got back together and things have gone right back to normal, except now they are even more deliriously happy and not afraid to show it. Like, ridiculously happy, sometimes she even thinks they are like a cheesy made for TV movie couple, but she loves it.

Because she loves him.

When she gets eventually gets to the bar, a huff of annoyance passes her lips and she brushes her hair over her shoulder. Someone close by really needs to remember that it’s summer and they should be wearing deodorant. 

“Hey there, gorgeous,” Emma looks up to see Tanya smiling at her as she fills a cup of beer. “I didn’t know you were coming in tonight.”

She quickly snatches up a free stool when a drunk customer vacates and places her clutch on the bar. 

“I wasn’t, but Henry is staying out so I figured I’d surprise Killian.”

Tanya hands the drinks off to her customers with a smile and turns back to her with a pout.

“Oh, poo. I thought you were coming to see me.”

Emma chuckles and shakes her head. Every time she comes into the bar when Tanya is working, she always flirts with her, mostly because it drives Killian nuts. Though, most men might be thrilled to see a good looking girl flirting with their girlfriend, her boyfriend is the complete opposite. His possessiveness goes into overdrive and he often growls at Tanya to leave her alone.

She’s about to open her mouth when someone yells for an order. Tanya rolls her eyes and moves down the bar, it’s then Emma realizes she’s working by herself.

“Hey!” she calls out to her. “Why are you by yourself?”

Tanya turns to grab a liquor bottle off the shelf as she answers, “Barry is sick and Killian is out back handling the shipment that should have been here this morning.”

Emma presses her lips together as more customers start to yell. Her eyes scan the crowd, there are so many people, Tanya is good, she’s seen her handle a crowd before, but this is _a lot._ Without giving it much thought, she hops up onto the bar and swings her legs around until she lands on the ground.

“What can I get you?” she asks one of the patrons.

Tanya smirks as she walks behind her. “Killian isn’t going to like this.”

Emma nods at the customer and moves to grab a bottle, she’s not the best, but she did spend a summer waitressing at a sports bar when Henry was three so she knows the basics.

“Killian will just have to deal with it.”

Tanya barks out a laugh before she turns to help another customer. She’s behind the bar helping for a half an hour before Killian finally comes back. 

“Sorry, lass. The driver was a bloody—” He stops when he almost walks right into Emma and his face lights up. “Emma?! What are you doing here?”

She bites her lip as she places two cups of beer on the bar before she turns to him.

“Henry is staying out tonight so I thought I’d surprise you.”

He kisses her and her insides melt, but when he pulls back, his brow goes together as he looks around. “What are you doing behind the bar?”

“She’s helping me!” Tanya calls out from the other side of the bar. “Make sure you _pay_ her real nice tonight, Killian, if you don’t, I will.”

There are a few cat calls from some men and Killian growls. “Stay away from my lady, Tanya!”

Both girls chuckle before Emma turns to help another customer. Killian tries to protest but when someone starts to get loud with Tanya, he has to move down to the bar to talk to them. Another fifteen minutes goes by before he’s able to talk to her again.

“Emma, though I’m bloody elated to see you, you don’t have to do this. It’s my job, not yours.”

Wiping her hands on a towel, she gives him a little smirk. “What’s the matter, afraid you’ll lose tips because your girlfriend is working with you?”

Rolling his eyes, he wraps his arms around her waist and moves her until the edge of the bar hits the middle of her back. 

“More worried about all the tips that my girlfriend will receive from the wankers trying to seduce her.”

Emma snorts and slaps his chest before he leans down to give her a kiss.

“Hey, love birds!” Tanya calls out. “I could use some help here!”

“Don’t be jealous!” Emma hollers back.

Tanya turns to blow her a kiss and Killian groans. “Don’t bloody encourage her.”

She laughs at her boyfriend and they move back to the bar. It’s amazing how even at something like working a bar, they are so in sync, it’s allowing her to have more fun than she probably should. It also helps that he lets her know in his own little way how much he loves her being there, whenever he walks behind her, he always brushes his hand on the small of her back, or when she’s pouring a beer from the tap, he’ll lean in and give her a kiss on the cheek.

Emma smiles at the customer who leaves a tip and places it in the tip bucket before she turns back to see a group of girls pointing to Killian and licking their lips. She rolls her eyes and walks over to them.

“What can I get you girls?”

The dirty blonde with big boobs giggles. “It’s okay, we’re waiting for the hot guy.”

Her eyebrows move up and she lets out a dry chuckle. “Well, he’s a little busy and I’m here, so what will you have?”

“Him in my bed!” A brunette slurs out while her girlfriends giggle.

Her jaw clenches and she has to force herself not to punch the girl, so she crosses her arms over her chest.

“Hey Killian,” she calls out over her shoulder. “Will you come here for a second?”

All of their eyes light up as her boyfriend walks up.

“Hey, beautiful,” he greets with a kiss to her temple, he really never disappoints. “Everything alright?”

She’s having troubling containing her smug grin as the group of girls go pale and look at her in worry. 

“These girls here want _you_ to take their orders.” His eyebrow arches before he turns to them. “Enjoy.”

She gives him a smirk and pats his stomach before walking away. Tanya snorts, shakes her head, and holds her hand up for a high five. Emma smacks it before they both turn back to help another group of people.

It’s an hour before closing when she realizes Killian’s mood has dampened extremely and she thinks she knows why. Throughout the night, they’ve both had to deal with watching drunk customers flirt with one another. It hasn’t been easy, but they both understand that it comes with the territory, and if you asked her, she would say they handled it pretty well.

But the last customer that flirted with her, she could tell that was it for him. The guy, whose name was Mike, started out innocent enough, asking her how her night was and being awfully friendly, she could feel Killian’s eyes on them the entire time. The second time Mike came up, he was slightly buzzed by then, but Killian still didn’t say anything. The third time, Mike was clearly drunk and she didn’t mind it when Killian moved to take his order instead. 

Mike tried to refuse his service, saying he was waiting for her when Killian just about snapped. They argued until he kicked Mike out, leaving him in a sour mood ever since. She tried talking to him but he told her he was fine and went back to work. He stalked off to the office fifteen minutes’ prior and has been back there ever since. 

Emma lets out a sigh and places the glasses she was cleaning back in their places.

“Go talk to him,” Tanya says with a bump of her elbow. “It’s slowed down enough that I can handle this on my own.”

With a smile of gratitude, she walks back to the office. When she enters, she sees Killian sitting at the chair behind the desk pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Are you okay?”

His body goes tense before he runs his hand through his hair and looks up at her. “Fine, Swan.”

He stands and turns his back to her, pretending to look for something in the filing cabinet. Before, she would have just walked out, let him get his feelings in check and let him calm his nerves before she spoke to him, but she knows the pressure he puts on himself, the self-loathing, and she also knows what it’s like to not have him. So even though she doesn’t, well, _tries_ not to think he’s going leave after a small argument, she puts effort into trying to make him feel better.

Emma walks up to him and wraps her arms around his waist. His back goes tense before he lets out a sigh, finally relaxing, and places his hand on her wrist, rubbing it softly with his thumb.

After a few moments he mumbles, “Perhaps I’m not okay with seeing a man flirt with you.”

Her lips twitch into a smile before she turns her head and kisses the middle of his back.

“I’m sorry,” her voice muffled by his back. “Maybe I shouldn’t have helped.”

He turns and wraps his arms around her. “No, Emma. What you did tonight… you were bloody fantastic. I can’t thank you enough for it. But, also, it opened my eyes to why you might not come down here that often.”

She snuggles her head into his chest and smiles. It’s true, she rarely comes down to the bar because seeing the girls flirt with him is a little too much for her, though she trusts him and doesn’t think he’ll do anything behind her back, she can’t stand it.

She can only imagine how it is for him.

“Well, like you told me… they don’t matter.”

He gives her a half smile that doesn’t reach his eyes and kisses her nose. “Aye, you’re right.”

Letting out a sigh, she moves her hands up to the middle of his back and spreads her fingers out.

Pushing herself up onto her toes, she brushes her nose against his and speaks softly, “Hey.” She waits until his eyes connect with hers. “I love you.”

He blinks a couple of times and looks at her in complete shock causing her brow goes together in confusion

“What?”

Shaking his head with a small smile and chuckling, “It’s just usually I’m the one that has to say that first.”

Her lips form into a smirk and she rubs her nose against his again. “Yeah, well…”

Voice husky and deep, he stares at her lips. “I love you, too.”

Later that night, he shows her exactly how much. 

* * *

Emma lays back on the sand with a smile and lets the sun bathe over her. If someone would have told her a year ago this would be her life now, she would have laughed in their face. When Henry and her moved, it was to get a new start. 

But then they met Killian Jones and her life was turned upside down. Now she can’t picture her life without him. It’s hard to believe three months prior, she let her fears take over and ended things with him, because now they are constantly together and never spent a night away from each other. She even gave him an extra key to her apartment, so when he works, he can let himself in. Those nights, she’ll wake up to him crawling into bed and pulling her into his arms. 

Things aren’t always sunshine and roses, though. They argue and fight, but it never ends in a breakup and one of them always ends up apologizing not long after because they can’t stand not talking to each other.

Their worst fight happened when Emma had to go on a fake date to catch a perp. Killian tried to forbid her from going, he hollered that his girlfriend wasn’t going out on a date with another man even if it was a fake one. There was yelling and screaming and she yelled, _“If you don’t like it, why don’t you just leave, then?! We both know it’s going to happen anyway!”_

Before he could even respond, she ran into her bedroom and slammed the door shut. She paced back and forth until her anger finally melted away and guilt replaced it. She didn’t know why she said what she said, he had spent a lot of time proving to her that he wasn’t going to leave and with her words, she basically told him that she didn’t believe him. 

A couple hours after their fight, she finally found the courage to leave the bedroom as her fingers fiddled with his brother’s ring on the end of the chain he gave her. Her cell phone was out in the dining room and she planned on calling and begging him to come back so that they could talk. To her complete and utter surprise, she walked out to find him sitting at her dining room table, bottle of rum and a half filled glass in front of him.

Again, he didn’t leave, he stayed.

As soon as he looked up at her, she let out a harsh breath and started to instantly apologize. He jumped up from his seat, rushed over to cut her off with a kiss. 

That night they came to an understanding, whenever she had to do a fake date to get a perp, which wasn’t often, he would tag along. He would stand back in the crowd and blend in, only interfering if necessary. Most of the time, he wasn’t needed. The perp was easily detained and they celebrated with a few drinks before heading back to her apartment. 

But there were a couple times he did have to step in. 

There was the time the perp ran, he put his leg out and tripped him before the perp could get out the door, and there was the time a perp grabbed her arm to yank her across the table, Killian had him on the ground with his arms behind his back before anyone knew what actually happened. She had to beg the officer not to arrest him after he broke the perps nose when he called her a disgusting name.

But with each hard time, they worked through them.

Emma didn’t open up right away, six months together, she still struggles with her ability to talk to him about some things, but he always understands, always talks her down from her freak outs or panic attacks... he’s just always _there_.

She hates herself for still expecting him to leave, but she can’t help it, she still has the fear that sometimes he’s just not going to show back up. Those times, she squeezes the ring around her neck so tight, it makes indents in her palm. Of course he always knows when she’s feeling that way, even if she doesn’t say it, he knows. So he smothers her with affection until she’s laughing so hard and begging him to go out with Henry so she can get a moment's peace.

The biggest step so far for her is allowing him to be more in Henry’s life. On the mornings she has work, Killian drops Henry off at school and when he has off from the bar, he’s always there to pick Henry up. She even added him as a emergency contact at Henry’s school in case they can’t get a hold of her. 

They were their own little family and she couldn’t be happier. 

“Mom!”

Emma sits up on her elbows and lifts her hand to block the sun, smiling when she sees Henry and Killian in the ocean. Her son is on top of Killian’s shoulders and he’s waving at her. She waves and laughs when they fall into the water. 

Tomorrow is their six-month anniversary, neither one of them had been actually aware of it until Henry brought it up. She’s never celebrated an anniversary before and she knew Killian wasn’t big on them because of what happened with Milah years before. But her son was so excited, they decided to take him to the beach for the weekend so that he could have fun. 

She could tell it made Killian uncomfortable every time Henry used the word anniversary, so she decided to take him aside and explain it to him. Her son felt bad and wanted to apologize, but she told him it was best if he just let it go. Apparently, he told Henry who Milah was a long while ago after he saw his tattoo but didn’t elaborate. 

When she was done explaining it to him, Henry hissed, “But what about our present?”

Biting her lip, she thinks about the little box in her bag back at the hotel. Killian’s apartment has become more or less unnecessary, more and more of his clothes found their way over to her place and he even had his own section in the closet. Whenever he needed something, he would always go over to get it and bring it back to her place. 

Her son, the loveable boy that he is, was the one that suggested Killian move in with them. At first she just stared at him in shock before she shook her head.

“You think Killian is worthy of joining our little family?”

Henry snorted. “He already is a part of our family, you guys just haven’t made it official yet. I can tell he wants us to be his home, he just won’t say anything because he doesn’t want to freak you out. I think he should. I mean, it would be nice to have something _close_ to a dad…”

A sad smile formed on her face at that, because even though she knew her son loved her, there was still a part of him that wanted a father, and though she never expected Killian to play father to her son, she knew he loved Henry as if he were his own, and even though they never talked about, something inside of her told her that she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him, so there was no sense in worrying about asking him to move in with them. The next day, she took her own key and put it in a black box with a bow. 

She’s going to ask him when they go out to dinner before they take Henry to the boardwalk later. 

Emma stands up from her towel and walks closer to the water when she sees them start to walk back to the beach.

“Everything okay, kid?”

“Mom, the water is so nice. You should really come in!”

She shakes her head and places her hand on her stomach. “I just ate lunch… I have to wait a little.”

Killian smirks and wraps his stunted arm around Henry’s shoulders. “I think your mother is just making excuses so she doesn’t have to go into the water.”

She presses her lips together and tries not to stare at him. His hair is stuck to his head and his lean, toned body drips with ocean water. His black bathing shorts left little to the imagination and she has to remind herself that they can’t do anything until the weekend was over.

Henry giggles and nods, agreeing with him. 

“I’m not making excuses!”

She sees them exchange a look and her instincts go on high alert. Those two are always conspiring against her, just last week when they went for a walk through Central Park, they hid behind a tree when she got a phone call from work and jumped out to scare her. She screamed so loud Kate went frantic on the other line and asked over and over if she was okay while they both laughed until tears were coming out of their eyes.

Henry shakes his head. “I’m going to get a drink.”

They both stand there and watch him run back to their spot for a bottle of water before Killian takes a step to her. Goosebumps go over her skin as his wet hand touches her waist.

“Have I told you how much I love this swim wear, love?”

She giggles and bites her lip. “Too bad you can’t do anything about it.”

Wiggling his eyebrows at her, he licks his bottom lip before he turns his head. 

“I can do something about all the men staring at you,” his eyes scan the beach. “That one bloke is about to get a good stomping.”

She reaches up to play with the charms on his necklace and bites her lip. He was always so busy finding men looking at her, he never seemed to notice the girls that looked his way. When they first arrived at the beach, as soon as he took his shirt off, all the females heads turned. 

She isn’t usually the jealous type, she knows he loves her, but before he went out into the water with Henry, she made sure to pull him down and stake her claim. When they pulled apart, he gave her a smirk with a raised eyebrow because he knew her reasoning behind it but didn’t comment.

He opens his mouth to say something else, his eyes still glaring at the men around them, when she tugs his necklace and says, “I love you.”

Turning back to her, his face softens before he leans in and gives her a light kiss. “I love you, too, beautiful.”

“Hm,” she hums against his lips. “But you’re still not getting me in the water.”

A smirk forms on his face before she steps back with her eyes wide.

“No.” His arms shoot out to grab her and she takes off. “No! Killian!”

She runs down the beach giggling while he laughs behind her. His fingers ghost over her but she manages to slap him away. He eventually catches up and she lets out a squeal as he wraps his left arm around her waist.

“Killian, don’t you dare!”

His laughter is loud in her ears as he hooks his right arm under her legs and picks her up bridal style.

Henry runs up to them with a big smile on his face, “Do it! Put her in the water!”

“Henry!” she cries out in shock and he just giggles as he jumps up and down.

Her protests go unheard while Killian walks her out to the water, as soon as it touches her skin, she lets out a hiss, lifting herself higher and clutches his shoulders tightly.

“You’re both in big trouble!”

They both laugh, obviously not caring for her minor threat.

“Shall we dunk the Lady Swan, lad?”

Opening her mouth to yell at him, Henry cuts her off with an excited, “Yes!”

Before she can protest, he pulls them both down under the water. When she finally comes back to the surface, Henry is giggling so hard he has to hold onto his stomach while Killian laughs. She tries to glare at him, but she can’t seem to because of how gorgeous he looks as he shakes his head to get his hair out of his face, it’s getting a little longer and keeps falling over his eyes.

Instead of saying anything, she splashes them both with shake of her head. They spend the next half an hour in the water, swimming and jumping waves, at one point, Killian carries Henry on his back and Emma on his front when a real big waves comes in. 

She can’t remember the last time they had such an amazing vacation. 

Eventually, Killian looks up at the sky and suggests they head back to the hotel. He is always able to tell what time of the day it was by just looking at the sun and it amazes her. 

“Wait!” Henry cries out as they run back to their blanket. “I want to take pictures!”

“Make sure you dry yourself first, lad,” Killian tells him.

The three of them dry off quickly before Henry grabs the camera Killian bought him for his birthday last month. She rolls her eyes with a smile as she packs up their belongings while Henry snaps pictures. 

“Mom! Come here!”

She wants to argue, but she can tell by the look in their eyes that it would be a futile attempt. So with a big smile, she stands next to her boyfriend for her son to take a picture, before he jumps in and takes one of all three of them.

She’s helping Killian put his brace for his prosthetic on when she hears him ask, “What’s that?”

Her eyes go wide when she sees him motion to the little black box Henry pulls out of his book bag. She shoots a look over at her son who blushes.

“I didn’t want it to get lost,” he says with a shrug.

She presses her lips together. He’s lying, he’s wanted to give it to Killian ever since she told him what she did, it took a lot of talking down for him to wait until the weekend. 

Killian looks at her in confusion before she lets out a sigh and motions to Henry. “Ask him.”

Henry giggles before he starts to move back and forth on his feet, “It’s a present for you!”

She tries to keep her eyes down, a little bit of her insecurities leaking through, but when Henry hands the box to Killian, she looks up.

He’s giving her a little smile with a raised eyebrow. “Present for me?”

She shrugs with a little nod before he opens the box. When he sees the key, his brow goes together.

“What—”

Not being able to control his excitement any longer, Henry jumps up and down as he cries out, “We want you to move in with us!”

Killian stares at the key in silence and she starts to panic. 

_ It’s too soon, he just doesn’t want to say anything in front of Henry. _

“Hey, you don’t have—”

Her words are cut off by Killian pressing his lips against hers firmly. Gasping, she wants nothing more than to melt against him, but when she hears her son’s giggle, she puts her hand on his chest to push him off. 

“Easy tiger, we got company.” He pulls away and the smile on his face is _dazzling_. “Is that a yes?”

As he chuckles, he puts his arm around Henry’s shoulders, pulling the boy to him, then does the same with her. “Nothing would make me happier.”

They both laugh as Henry cheers while they all hug each other and when they go back to New York, Killian moves in.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys continue to amaze. honestly, I love you all so much. Thank you. Quick note, things move pretty fast in this chapter, it's going to be six months since the last chapter, which, if you guys haven't figured out, puts them in New York a year and a half. That's right, in Unbreakable, I'm changing their time away from a year, to a year and a half. Why? Because I can hehe Try not to hurt yourselves if you flail, okay? <3

If someone would have told Killian when he first moved to New York this was going to be his life, he would have suggested they had their head examined. But here he is, in love with a wonderful woman who has a son he has come to think of as his own, they live together, and there is a very important ring burning a hole in his pocket.

The topic of marriage was first brought up by his boss, Larry after they got back from a deep sea fishing trip. It was the longest he had spent away from Henry and Emma _ever_ , the break up not included, but she was the one who insisted he go.

“You haven’t been out on the water since you moved here,” she said as she sat down on the couch next to him. “I think you should go. Don’t worry about us.”

He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. “I’ll be gone for four days, Emma.”

She smiled at him as she brushed her fingers over his shoulder.

“It’ll be fine…” He gave her a skeptical look, because even though she was trying her hardest, sometimes her past abandonment issues still came into play. She stared down at her lap. “You should still probably call when you can, though.”

That weekend, he went on the trip. He missed them both terribly and called or texted whenever he was able to get a signal, but he did enjoy himself. It was nice to be out on the ocean again, but he found it was different than before. The ocean always felt like home to him, but he knew home now was where Emma and Henry were. They ended up leaving a day earlier than expected, the fish weren’t biting as well as they hoped. As the boat docked, he looked up to see Emma standing on the pier waiting for him.

She was even more beautiful than he remembered.

He bounced on his toes while he waited for the okay to leave the boat, and when it was finally announced, he practically flew off the deck. She spotted him just as he touched the ground and started to run toward him. The smile on his face caused his cheeks to hurt when he heard her squeal right before she jumped into his arms.

Her lips fused onto his as she wrapped her legs around his waist. The men on the boat cheered and gave cat calls, but they ignored them.

“I’m glad you’re home,” she whispered against his mouth.

“I’ll always come home to you, Emma.” He grinned and kissed her again.

After spending three hours in bed, they went to pick Henry up at school, where he was greeted with the same excitement and it warmed his heart.

The next day at the pub, Larry asked him when he was going to make an honest woman out of Emma and Killian just stared at him. They’d only been living together for five months and even _that_ still floored him.

When her and Henry asked him to move in he wanted to cry tears of joy. Of course he had already come to look at their flat as home, but it just made it more official.

When he gave his boss a shrug, Larry barked out a laugh and clamped his hand down on his shoulder.

“You’re not getting any younger, Jones! You’re living with the girl... I saw the way you two were yesterday, these are the things you think about.”

And he did.

Killian thought about it for a week straight before he came up with his answer one night after Emma had a particular hard day tailing a perp.

* * *

_He should have known there was something wrong when she didn’t answer any of his texts all day, but he was busy at the pub then he took Henry over his friend’s house for a sleepover so he didn’t notice._

_When he walks into their flat, it’s dark and it causes his brows to go together because Emma should be home._

_He reaches up to turn the light on and calls out, “Swan?”_

_Eyes squinting at the brightness, there’s a movement out of the corner of his eye and he turns. His heart drops into his chest when he sees Emma sitting on their kitchen floor. Her legs are bent in front of her, her back is against the fridge, and she has a half drank bottle of rum in her hands._

_Trying to get to her as fast as possible, he skids across the floor and drops down in front of her, barely noticing the ache from landing too hard on his knees._

_“Is it Henry? Is he…?”_

_He chokes on his words, unable to finish because he can’t think straight. He was just with the lad, what could have happened in that short time? No, it can’t be, he refuses to believe that. If something happened to Henry his world will end, he won’t know how to go on._

_She slowly moves her head to the left then to the right and his shoulders sag in relief._

_Henry is safe, it’s not him._

_Instantly, his eyes start to rake over her body to check for injuries but he sees none._

_“What’s wrong?”_

_She doesn’t answer him; she just stares off into space, her face completely blank. Her eyes are glassy and when she blinks, it’s slowly. Without a word, she brings the bottle up to her lips and takes a long swig. He swallows the lump in his throat and cups her face, his thumb brushing over the swell of her cheek, but she still doesn’t look at him._

_“Emma, you’re scaring me, love.”_

_Her eyes finally connect with his, and he has to hold back his gasp of surprise, they look so hollow… so frightened._

_“He left them…”_

_He puts his prosthetic on her knee and tightens his hold on her cheek. His heart is slamming against his chest and he can’t remember the last time he’s ever been more frightened in his life._

_“Who?”_

_Tears form in her eyes and her face goes hard._

_“Their_ father _,” the way she spits out the word actually causes him to flinch. “He knew what they were going to do and he just left them.”_

_He licks his lips and his face scrunches together. “Emma…”_

_“The woman I was tailing?” He nods. “I got her, she had her kids with her… a boy and a girl. Roger said unless their father took them, they would have to go into the system.”_

_His eyes close and he holds back his wince, without her finishing, he already knows how this story is going to end._

_“I went to him. He… he didn’t know about them. She never…” she looks down at her lap and he reaches down to lace his fingers with her own. She takes a deep breath and shakes her head. “I told him about what they would do, how they would go into the system and might be separated. He didn’t care. I even took them to him, so he could see his children, maybe feel something… but he didn’t and he just left them, he abandoned them without a care in the world.”_

_“Love…”_

_Her glassy eyes connect with his and he can see her chin start to quiver as she starts to speak again._

_“Why weren’t they enough? They never did anything to anyone! It’s not their fault they were born; they didn’t ask for any of it. They are just a couple of kids…” Her voice breaks out into a sob and he pulls her into his arms._

_His heart breaks with every sob that rakes through her chest and he squeezes her tight as she curls herself into his chest. His lips kiss the top of her head as he rocks her back and forth._

_Killian knows that when Emma said ‘they’ she really meant ‘her’. Trying to help those kids brought back all the abandonment issues she keeps hidden on a daily basis and she’s breaking._

_The bottle of rum slips from her hands, the remaining contents spilling onto their laps, before her arms wrap around his neck. He lets out a stuttering breath as her arms continue to grip him and try to pull him even closer to her._

_“Emma, it’s okay.”_

_She continues to sob as she pulls back to look up at him, her face now showing panic._

_“What if that happened to Henry?” He opens his mouth but she continues in a frantic pace. “What if something happens to me and they try to find Neal? Killian, he would leave him, just like he left me. I know it—”_

_“Nothing is going to happen to you.”_

_She shakes her head. “You don’t know that.”_

_Reaching up to cup her face again, he tells her softly, “Aye, I do. Because I won’t allow it.”_

_“You can tell the future now?”_

_“I can tell our future,” he whispers to her. “Nothing will ever happen to you or to Henry, not while you’re in my charge.”_

_Her lips crack into a small smile and she lets out a puff of air. Leaning her forehead against his own, his eyes close when she reaches up to run her fingers over his jaw. Her lips brush against his softly before she rests her head on his shoulder._

_They stay silent for a long while before he hears her mumble, “I don’t know what I would do if I ever lost you.”_

_He takes a deep breath and pulls her closer to his body, moving his right hand up to glide through her hair and kisses her temple. Again, he knows that when she says ‘lost’ she really means ‘if you ever leave’. They’ve come so far from all those months prior when she ran, but there are still moments he finds her scared that he’s going to leave. Almost like she’s too vulnerable to her own feelings but he’s always there to remind her that he’s not going anywhere._

_“You’re not going to lose me, Emma,” he tells her. “My place is by your side, always.”_

_They sit on the kitchen floor for a little while longer before he stands, still holding her in his arms. She instantly curls against him, her arms wrapping around his shoulders while burying her face in his neck. He can tell she’s not entirely okay yet and all he wants to do is take care of her, show her that it’s okay to be vulnerable around him. He draws them a warm bath and helps her undress. Her brow is still scrunched together in pain, her lips drawn down in a frown, and all he wants to do is see her beautiful smile._

_Lifting her shirt over her head, he pulls it off in a dramatic fashion and sings out, “Taaaddaaa!”_

_A slight giggle escapes her lips and it makes his whole night. After she steps into the tub, he strips down and gets in behind her. His arms wrap around her, pulling her back to him and he can’t help but smile when she rubs her thumb across his stump._

_They stay silent for a long time before she sighs and leans her head back against his shoulder._

_“I’m going to try to help them.”_

_His nose moves to her hair. “Aye?”_

_“I know a couple of the social workers. I’m going to see if there is a way we can guarantee they won’t be separated. It’s not much but…”_

_“It’s something,” he mumbles back. “Having someone is better than no one.”_

_He shivers when he thinks of Liam. Gods only know what would have happened if he hadn’t had him after their father left._

_“It’s going to be hard. But I have to try, I just have to figure out the best way to go about it.”_

_“And you will.”_

_She turns her head to look back at him. “You think so?”_

_Voice low, but strong, he tells her, “I have yet to see you fail.”_

_Her eyes look back and forth between his for a couple seconds before she kisses him. They make love softly in the tub, neither caring when the water splashes over the edge. That night, Killian realizes there are only two things in his life that he’s absolutely positive of._

_One._

_He loves Emma and Henry more than he’s ever thought possible._

_Two._

_He wants to spend the rest of his life with them._

* * *

“You want to _marry_ her?” Henry gasps.

Killian gives him a small smile. He decided to take the lad out for lunch, just the two of them, to ask him for his mother’s hand in marriage.

“Aye, I do. I love Emma very much.”

Henry’s face scrunches up in confusion as he puts his cheeseburger back down on his plate.

“Then why are you asking me? I thought you were supposed to ask her?”

He chuckles and pulls himself closer to the table.

“Well, traditionally, the question is asked to the lady’s father and he’s to give his blessing if he feels the man worthy. But the only man that I’m concerned with finding me worthy of marrying Emma, is you.”

Henry’s eyes widen. “Me?”

“Aye. I wouldn’t feel comfortable doing this if you weren’t okay with it, Henry.”

He starts to squirm in his seat and Killian gets nervous. He and Henry are close, he thinks of him as his own, but this is big. It’s been Henry and Emma by themselves since he was born and he would understand if the lad feels uncertain about the whole situation.

“Does that mean… well… would you be like m-my dad, then?”

He leans forward and shakes his head. “It doesn’t have to mean that.”

When Henry looks up at him with shiny eyes, his heart breaks. “You don’t want to be my dad?”

He reaches out and puts his hand on the lad's shoulder.

“Henry, I want to be whatever it is _you_ want me to be, whether that’s your friend, or your stepfather. That doesn’t mean I love you any less, or makes you any less my son.”

With his eyes wide and a small smile on his face, he asks in a whisper, “You think of me as your son?”

He smiles at him and squeezes his shoulders. “Aye, I do.”

Henry launches himself into his arms so quickly, his chair slides back at the impact. Killian lets out a chuckle and wraps his arms around the lad. He knows that Henry’s always wished for a bigger family, it’s not that he doesn’t love his mother, it’s just he’s a typical young boy that wishes he also had a father, and he vows in that moment to be the best father figure he can be.

He gets the lads blessing and has to remind him that he must not breathe a word of it to his mother until after it happens. Henry agrees as long as he can go with him to pick out the ring.

Killian smirks. The lad knows how to make a good deal.

They spend hours searching for rings in three different stores but none of them seem right. Killian is just about to give up when Henry calls him over. The second his eyes land on the ring, he knows it’s the perfect and he buys it right then.

“Now I just have to decide when will be the right time to ask,” he says with a chuckle as they walk out of the store.

Henry’s face lights up before it quickly morphs into sadness and he looks down.

“What is it, lad?”

“Um, well… I know when you can do it, but… no, it’s a bad idea,” he mumbles and shakes his head.

“Henry, what’s wrong?” The boy squirms on his feet and Killian kneels down in front of him. “You can tell me.”

He takes a deep breath and starts, “Next week is your guys one-year anniversary… but mom told me you don’t like to celebrate anniversaries so it’s a stupid idea.”

He reaches up and takes a hold of his arm.

“It’s not a stupid idea…”

“I just don’t want to upset you. Mom told me about Milah and I’m really sorry that happened…”

Tears start to form in the boy’s eyes before Killian pulls him into his arms.

“Shh, ‘s alright, lad.”

Henry sniffs and places his head on Killian’s shoulder. “She just wanted me to know why you don’t like anniversaries, I hope you’re not upset.”

When they pull away, Killian reaches up and wipes the lads tears away.

“I’m not upset, I’m glad she told you. Milah was very special to me, perhaps one day I’ll you about her.” Henry nods and Killian smiles at him. “But you know, perhaps proposing to your mother on our anniversary is a good idea. I can’t keep living in the past,” he comments, more to himself than Henry. “I think it’s time to move forward.”

The boy’s eyes light up and he smiles. “Really?”

“Aye. Now, do you think you can help me like you did the first time?”

* * *

The music from his headphones blares in his ears as he does his morning jog. The ocean waves always calm him, but that morning, it seems like nothing in the world can calm him.

It’s he and Emma’s one-year anniversary. One-year prior he asked her out on their first date and they’ve been together ever since, the little three week break up notwithstanding.

He isn’t much for celebrating anniversaries, he lost Milah on one, but he wants to change the bad memories and make them into something good.

Killian is panting when he gets back to their flat. He smiles at the old woman who’s moved into his old place and unlocks the door. Emma is already at work and he has the day to get ready for their date that night, and to try and calm his nerves.

He knows she loves him. There is no doubt in his mind how much she loves him, but marriage is a big step. He likes to think she won’t say no, but there is a small part of him that still worries that she’ll freak out over it. She’ll think it’s too much and she’ll push him away. But he believes in his Swan, she’s opened up to him so much in the past year, and even though she still has some of her walls, she talks to him much more than she ever has.

They are more connected than they ever have been.

They have their problems, of course, but nothing extreme.

Just the other night they fought because he decided to stay at the pub with Barry for a couple drinks and he neglected to call her. He left his phone in his coat pocket and when he got home she was pissed.

_“I made dinner, Killian. You were supposed to be home hours ago!”_

_“Sorry, love. Barry and I decided to have a few rounds and I lost track of time.”_

_His voice is slurred and it seems to only fuel her anger more. He tries to flirt his way out of it, but she’s really upset._

_“Just stop!” she growls when he tries to pull her to him again._

_He lets out a sigh and runs his hand through his hair. He wants to say something but Henry emerges from his bedroom and asks him if he will play a videogame with him._

_Emma mumbles she’s tired and goes to their bedroom. He can tell by the slamming of the door he’s meant to sleep on the couch, but around eleven, he creeps into the room. She’s on her side with her back to him but he can tell she’s still awake. Laying down on the bed, he slowly moves until he’s lying right behind her. When she doesn’t say anything, he places his hand on her side. It takes only a second before she grabs him and pulls him around her body so that he may snuggle into her and bury his head in her neck._

_The next morning it’s like nothing happened._

Killian gets into the shower and lets the hot water run down his back. His muscles are tense and he takes a deep breath. He’s never thought of marriage before, even with Milah. They were just happy to be together, and something about her ex made her never want marriage so he never questioned her.

But with Emma, he feels a deep need to make himself hers… officially.

He shuts the water off and steps out of the shower. It still gives him a rush of happiness to see his things mixed in with Emma and Henry’s. They really have become their own little family.

He just hopes she will remember that when he proposes.

He’s just walked into their bedroom when he hears the front door close.

“Shouldn’t you be at work, love?” he asks with a forced smile when she walks into the room.

She shrugs her shoulders and wraps her arms around his waist.

“I’m sorry I fell asleep on you last night,” she whispers against his lips.

He smiles at her before his lips press against hers. Last night they exchanged lust filled texts while he was working his shift at the pub and she promised to wait up for him so that they could explore some of the promises that they made to each other, but when he got home, she was asleep on the couch.

He wasn’t upset though, she was positively adorable while she was sleeping, so he just carried her to their bed and fell asleep with her in his arms.

“It’s quite alright, darling. I know how exhausted you have been lately.”

It’s true, she’s been working so much lately that whenever she is home, she’s doing nothing but taking naps and oversleeping in the morning.

“Still,” she starts as she pushes him toward the bed and makes him sit down. “I made a promise.”

He looks at her in confusion before a stuttering breath leaves his lips as she drops to her knees in front of him.

“Swan, what are you doing?”

She smiles before she grabs the towel around his waist and pulls it free.

“Making it up to you.”

He doesn’t have time to respond before she takes him into her hot mouth.

“Ugnnnnnah!” he breathes out and squeezes his eyes shut. “Bloody hell, Emma.”

He feels her smile around him before her tongue swirls and she takes him in deeper. He falls back to lay down on the bed and lets out a loud groan as her mouth works its way up and down him. He’s had plenty of blow jobs in his life, but Emma is by far the best he’s ever had. She makes him feel things he’s never felt before, and no matter how hard he tries to control himself, he’s never able to when she’s performing.

His mouth opens in a silent cry and his fingers reach down to thread through her golden hair. His moans and pants echo off the walls while his left arm shoots up to cover his face as he feels himself starting to reach his peak. Her head moves faster over him and he knows it’s only a matter of seconds before he’s done for.

“Emma… Gods… Emma….”

Killian spills himself against her tongue with a loud groan and his back arches up off of the bed. His fingers fall from her hair and his left arm lays across his eyes as he lays there panting, trying to collect himself. He feels her put the towel across his lap before she kisses his stomach.

“I have to go.”

“Huh?” He removes his arm and looks at her in confusion.

Giggling, she checks herself over in the mirror before turning back to him. “I have to get back to work.”

When she tries to walk passed, he finds the energy to reach up and pull her down to him.

“But what about you? You know I never leave my love wanting.”

She smiles and leans down until her lips are a hair's breadth away from his.

“Guess you’ll just have to make it up to me,” she whispers, and he growls back, chasing her lips.

She gives another giggle before she kisses his nose. He sits up and gives her behind a little swat as she rushes out of the room.

“Don’t forget tonight!” he calls out to her.

“I won’t!”

“Love you!”

Right before the door closes, she yells back, “Love you, too!”

He smiles and falls back onto the bed. All his tension gone thanks to his beautiful girlfriend, and, hopefully, by the end of the night, future wife.

* * *

Killian paces back and forth in the living room as he waits for Emma to emerge from their bedroom, he’s nervous to the point where he’s almost shaking. He runs his hand through his hair and tries to force his stomach to stop churning. Though he hates to admit it, there’s a strong possibility that this could end with him losing Emma and Henry, and he’s knows that is something he won’t be able to survive. He needs them in his life, they are home to him, so he has to believe that it won’t happen like that.

His eyes snap up when he hears the bedroom door open.

Emma walks out, her hands up by her ears as she secures her earring, and she looks just as gorgeous as she did a year ago. The red compliments her pale skin wonderfully and he finds himself wanting to take her back into the room so he can ravish her properly.

He rolls his eyes when he remembers they are the same thoughts that went through his head the first time he saw her in that dress. Apparently even after they’ve spent a year together he can barely control himself around her.

“Any particular reason why you wanted to me to wear this dress?”

He smiles as her hands run over the front of her, he can see the chain that holds his brothers ring around her neck, tucked down into her cleavage. The only time she ever takes it off is when she showers, and even then, as soon as she has her towel wrapped around her, she’s putting it back on. It warms his heart to see her treat something so important to him as something precious.

“Maybe I just fancy seeing you in it.”

She chuckles. “Or maybe you’re just hoping you can do what you wanted a year ago.”

He pokes his tongue into his cheek and bites his lip causing her to blush. With a smirk, he saunters over to her and slides his hand across her waist to the small of her back.

“You seem very sure of yourself there, Swan,” he whispers against her lips. “Perhaps there’s another reason.”

Licking her lips, she wraps her arms around his neck. “Are you saying you didn’t think about that at all that night?”

He smiles and kisses her. “I did envision peeling you out of this dress many a night.”

Eyes glazing over with lust, her voice turns husky, “What’s stopping you?”

He groans before his lips connect with hers. They both battle for dominance as his hand goes to the back of her head and her leg lifts to wrap around his own while her hand reaches down to grip his ass. He can feel her lips smile against him as he sucks in a breath. Her teeth bite down on his bottom lip and he has to force him to pull back.

“You’re a siren,” he huffs out and she giggles. “I have a nice evening planned for us, you know?”

She gives him a slight pout and he chuckles before he gives her another soft kiss. “Come on, love. Let’s sail away.”

He laces his fingers through hers and they leave. Every time he takes a step the box in his pocket rubs against his thigh and it only makes his heart beat faster. When they finally get to the roof deck, she gives him a breathtakingly beautiful smile.

“Wow, you’re really going all out.”

Motioning to the table, he explains, “Well, it was year ago tonight we had our first date. I thought we should honor it by doing the same thing.”

He pulls out her chair for her and helps her push it in before he makes his way over to the other side. He curses under his breath when he almost trips over the leg of the table.

He can feel her eyes on him, but he distracts himself by getting their dinner ready. The bottle of sparkling wine shakes as he pours them each a glass but he ignores it. He tries to pull it together, but after he almost knocks over his glass for the third time, Emma sighs.

“Killian,” she wipes her mouth the napkin. “Why are we up here? Why are we doing this?”

His head shakes and he tries to force a smile. “I don’t know what you mean, love.”

Her hand shoots out and she grasps his prosthetic. His eyes move to her and he lets out a sigh when he sees the sorrow on her face.

“Baby, you don’t have to do this,” she whispers. “I know how you feel about anniversaries and you know they don’t matter to me, either. This is sweet and I appreciate it, but not at the expense of hurting yourself.”

A small smile forms on his face before he covers her hand with his own. She’s always so aware of his feelings, just like he is aware of hers, that she thinks he’s nervous because of what happened years before with Milah. Though he did have his fears, they were his main reasoning for having nonalcoholic beverages, just in case they needed to go somewhere, and if they did, he would be driving, but no, that isn’t what is making him nervous.

He loves Emma more than he can remember loving anyone in his entire life and he knows without a doubt he wants to spend the rest of his life with her, but his beautiful Swan still has her walls. She’s opened herself up to him in more ways than he ever thought possible, but this is a big step. It could undo everything they accomplished together and he could lose her. But he has to try, he doesn’t want to live his life afraid, he wants to live it with her and Henry. He knows she loves him and he knows she’s trying; he just doesn’t know if she is going to say yes.

“It’s not that, love,” he whispers before he brings her hand up to his mouth and kisses it.  “But thank you for being so considerate.”

She gives him a warm smile and her thumb rubs against his palm.

“Then what is it? And don’t tell me nothing, you’re acting like you’re about to jump out of your skin.”

He gives her hand another kiss with a slight squeeze before he places it back on the table and stands. His heart pounds in his chest and he can hear his blood pumping through his ears but he does his best to ignore it and walk over to her. Her eyes are on him the entire time, and when he gets down on both knees in front of her, her brow goes together.

“Emma, you know I love you,” he starts. “And you know I love Henry…”

She starts to breathe heavy and her chin starts to quiver, her brain clearly placing a ‘but’ at the end of his sentence. He can see tears form in her eyes and her body go stiff.

“Are you leaving us?” she asks in a horrified whisper.

He balks at her words, her voice sounds so broken and scared and he immediately starts to shake his head as he reaches up to cup her jaw. “No, sweetheart, no. I told you, I’m never going to leave.”

She breathes out a sigh of relief and her whole body relaxes. He smiles when she puts her hand over his and turns to place a kiss on his palm. His thumb rubs a fallen tear from the roundness of her cheek before he pulls his hand away to reach into his pocket.

“This is quite the opposite. Now, can you do me a favor and just listen before you say anything?”

Letting out a watery chuckle, she rolls her eyes and says, “I’ll try my best.”

His fingers latch on to the box as he clears his throat before he looks back up at her.

“For more years than I care to remember, I’ve lived by one rule, look out for yourself, and you’ll never get hurt, and I did, I was the only person that I cared about and it worked quite well for me, but then I met you and Henry.”

She bites her lip and gives him a shy smile.

“I was drawn to you both in a way that I couldn’t explain. I told myself that I was perfectly content being your friend, that having you in my life in any context was a prize. But then you kissed me and my world changed.”

Her brow goes together. “With a kiss?”

“It’s what the kiss exposed. When I first came to New York, I was a shell of a man, living in the past, unable to get over the pain. I never thought, never dreamed, that I’d be capable of letting go of my first love, of my Milah, to believe that I could find someone else that is, until I met you.”

Tears shine bright in her eyes as he feels his own forming.

“I love you, Emma. I love you with all I am. Meeting Henry in the hall that day was the best thing that ever happened to me. You have given me more than I could have ever dreamed of. A home, a family, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you two because I honestly can’t see a future without both of you in it.”

He pulls the box out of his pocket and places it on his prosthetic. His hand starts to shake as he opens it to reveal the white gold, crown cut engagement ring. The center diamond is a round brilliant cut with two diamonds on the side. He hears her gasp and when he looks up at her, he sees her eyes are glued to the ring.

“Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

His whole body is shaking as he stares up at her, her jaw is dropped and her hands are clenched into fists on her lap. He doesn’t know how long they sit there in silence before he starts to breathe heavy and his tongue pokes out to lick his lips.

“I know this might seem fast, and if you’re—”

“Yes.”

His breath catches as he blinks up at her in shock. His mouth opens and shuts a couple times. “Come again?”

Nodding her head with a big smile she repeats, “Yes!”

He’s shaking so much he almost drops the box, but luckily she reaches to help him. Once the ring is out, he lets the box fall to the ground and slips it onto her finger. He lets out a watery chuckle before he brings her hand to his mouth and kisses the ring, just as she reaches down to cup his jaw and pulls him to her.

He reaches up and rubs his hand over her face, almost in complete awe because part of him still can’t believe that this wonderful, gorgeous woman is his, before he takes her chin between his thumb and his forefinger and kissing her as if she’s the most precious thing in the world, because to him, she is. He pulls back only slightly when breathing becomes an issue and can’t help the large smile that forms on his face. It only widens when he sees her own mirrors his.

“I love you,” she whispers to him.

Pulling her back to him, he mumbles against her lips, “I love you, too. Emma. I love you so much.”

When they get back to their flat, he kisses every inch of her skin and has her peak twice before he finally enters her. They make love slowly, because he wants to take his time, he wants to show her how much he truly loves her, and when they finally go to sleep, they are so wrapped up in each other, neither can tell where one starts and the other ends.

Later that night, Killian wakes with a choked gasp and his heart pounding in his chest. He can feel the sweat on the back of his neck as he tries to control his breathing.

The dream was so real, so vivid. It felt like it was actually happening. Emma was standing in front of him with a look of sorrow. In the dream, she left him.

_“I can’t take a chance that I’m wrong about you.”_

He rubs his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose before he turns to look at the woman lying next to him. She’s on her stomach and her head is facing him. She looks completely peaceful as she sleeps and he breathes a sigh of relief while rolling onto his side and snuggling closer to her. The warmth of her skin makes him feel a little better but it’s not until he runs his fingers down her spine and he feels her that he finally starts to calm.

Emma lets out a little sigh and he leans over to kiss her shoulder. His hand spreads on the small of her back and his eyes squeeze shut as another flash from the dream takes over his thoughts.

_“Swan!”_

In the dream, he screamed her name multiple times but she never looked back.

His lips find her shoulder again and slowly move to the curve of her neck. He needs her, needs to feel her around him to make sure she’s real, that she hasn’t left him. His hand rubs up her back and down her side, his fingers brushing over the side of her breast as he kisses past her neck and across her shoulder blades. His cock twitches to life and he groans softly as it presses into her side.

When she lets out a soft moan and reaches back to grasp his hair, he rolls himself onto her, using his legs to push hers further apart and spreading them wide. He braces himself on his left elbow and moves her underwear aside before he thrusts himself inside of her.

“Gods,” he groans and she whimpers as he holds still and rests his head against her back.

It doesn’t matter how many times they have been together, whenever he enters her, it always feels better than the last. When he feels her squirm under him a surge of primal need flows through his veins.

She’s there.

She hasn’t left him.

He holds himself up and starts to move hard and fast, her cheeks cushioning his thrusts. His grunts fill the room while her moans are muffled by the pillows, their skin slaps together and his jaw clenches as he thrusts even harder.

She whimpers and moans beneath him with her chest pressed firmly against the bed, but her hips on a slight angle, giving him the chance to hit the spot that makes her cry out. He can feel her walls clench around him and he knows it won’t be long until he follows. The light from the moon catches her hand when she balls it into a fist and the diamond ring sparkles.

_His_ ring.

She isn’t leaving.

She’s his.

All his.

His thrusts become erratic before his hips press her down into the mattress and he lets out a final grunt as he empties inside of her. He rests his head on her shoulder for a couple of seconds, trying to catch his breath, before he slowly pulls out and rolls off to lay on his back as his chest continues to heave up and down.

The last thing he remembers before he drifts back off to sleep is Emma snuggling into his chest and whispering how much she loves him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> everyone take deep breaths for me!!! remember, we have a lot of stuff to get through so you can't die yet!


	16. Chapter Sixteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I could describe in words how nervous I am for this chapter, it would be a novel. I worked so hard, and I have a feeling, you all are going to kill me. So I’m going out after this post to drink lots of alcohol. Please take that into account when you start to scream, that I may be hungover ;-p
> 
> double line breaks mean change of POV

** Chapter Sixteen **

“Can I be in the wedding?” Henry asks with a big smile as he bounces in his seat.

Emma chuckles while Killian reaches over to ruffle his hair.

“Of course, lad. You think your mother and I would get married and not have you in the wedding?”

She sees the boy's cheeks go pink as she puts the last of the dinner on the table and sits down. Killian starts to fill Henry’s plate and she’s overcome with a sense of happiness. Henry loves Killian just as much as she does, and if that isn’t clear by how happy he is about their engagement, he made it very clear a couple nights prior.

_After a long discussion with Killian, Emma finally decides to tell Henry the truth about his father, he’s old enough to know the truth. Plus, she’s engaged, Henry should know why his father isn’t around and why she’s marrying another. She takes him out, just her and him, they go to the movies, then the arcade, and the entire time she tries to find the courage to tell him. But her son is smart, and he knows there’s something going on. When she finally tells him the truth about Neal, he cries and it breaks her heart. She’s always known that Henry wished his father was a hero and she crushed all his dreams. But what surprises her the most, is after his initial shock, he asks to go see Killian at the bar._

_“Mom, please,” he begs, cheeks still wet from his tears. “I just… I just want to see him.”_

_With a sigh, she adjusts herself in the driver seat and takes his hand in hers, “Henry, we can’t. He works at a bar, I can’t allow you to go there.”_

_He lets out a huff and crosses his arms over his chest, refusing to look at her. It’s not often that he asks for things like this and she feels terrible that she has to tell him no, but it’s a Friday night and she knows the bar will be packed, not allowing Killian time for whatever Henry wants._

_“Hey,” she offers softly. “How about I let you stay up until he comes home? You can see him then.”_

_Henry eyes her sideways, and when she nods letting him know that she’s serious, he finally relents. They spend the rest of the night in their living room watching movies. She thinks he might fall asleep, but he never waivers and when Killian walks in at three a.m., he’s wide awake._

_A look of worry flashes over Killian’s when he sees they are both still up, but before she can tell him what’s going on, Henry jumps up from the couch and rushes over to him. Stumbling back from the force of Henry’s hug, Killian instantly wraps his arms around him and looks to her for answers._

_Fighting the tears in her eyes as she watches Henry hug Killian tight, she walks up and gives him a small smile._

_“I’m going to let you two talk,” she says softly before leaning up to kiss his cheek. “Goodnight.”_

_She walks into their bedroom and closes the door with tears running down her face. If she could, she would walk out of their apartment, hunt Neal Cassidy down and beat him to a bloody pulp, and not because of what he did to her, no, she doesn’t matter, what matters is Henry._

_Laying down in their bed, she attempts to go to sleep, but her emotions keep her awake and she doesn’t relax until Killian crawls next to her almost an hour later._

_“Are you alright, love?”_

_Turning to face him, she wraps herself around his body and lets his arms chase away every bad memory that keeps flashing through her mind._

_Not answering his question, she mumbles against his chest, “Is he okay?”_

_He sighs and brings his hand up to cup her face, his thumb brushing against her jaw. “He cried a lot, but we spoke. I think he’ll be okay, he’s asked for he and I to do something tomorrow. Perhaps I can take him down to the docks, there’s a place that rents out boats…”_

_She listens as he lists off the things he plans to do tomorrow with Henry and it makes her heart soar. She’s always known he loved Henry, but it’s not until this moment she realizes how much, because he’s willing to do anything and everything just to make sure the boy feels better about what happened in her past._

_Cutting him off, she whispers, “Thank you.”_

_His lips press against her forehead, while his thumb still rubs softly against her jaw, “For what, Swan?”_

_She lifts her head until her eyes connect with his and answers, “For being such a positive father figure in_ our _son’s life.”_

_The smile he gives her is so breathtakingly beautiful she can’t help but kiss it and try to steal it for herself._

“Do you know…” Henry starts, breaking her out of her thoughts.

“Don’t talk with your mouth full, Henry,” she sighs and rolls her eyes.

Henry chews his food and swallows it down before he starts again. “Do you know when you want to get married?”

Killian and her exchange a look and a small smile.

Chuckling, she says, “We just got engaged a last week, kid.”

“I know, but it’s exciting! Mom, you’re going to look like a princess.”

She sees Killian smirk and arch his eyebrow at her before he takes a sip of his beer.

With a snort, she shakes her head, “I’m far from a princess. How’s school?”

They three of them eat dinner together while Henry tells her about his science fair the night before. She got stuck at work late and wasn’t able to meet up with him and Killian until the very end, she felt so guilty, she cried as she begged for his forgiveness.

After dinner is finished, her and Killian clear the table while Henry pulls out his homework. When she gets to the kitchen, she winces as she unpacks the condiments from her arm and brings her hands to her chest, her breasts have been real tender lately and just touching them lightly hurts.

“What’s wrong?”

She looks up to see Killian putting the last of the dishes in the dishwasher, his face masked with concern.

“Yeah, I just…” she looks over at Henry before lowering her voice. “My chest really hurts this month.”

His eyebrows raise. “Might have something to do with that new shot?”

She contemplates his suggestion and shrugs. She changed her birth control from the pill to the shot two months prior and her doctor did warn her of different symptoms.

“Maybe. I’ll look it up later tonight.”

Sauntering over to her with his bottom lip in between his teeth, his hand wraps around her waist before he asks, “Think they are sensitive to other sensations, as well?”

She tries to keep a stern face, but her lips tug into a smile as she slaps his arm and says, “Behave.”

He wiggles his eyebrows at her before he turns to help Henry with his homework.

Later that night, when they are both lying side by side panting after their love making, Killian chuckles. “I think taking this shot was the best idea you ever had, love.”

Brushing the hair away from her face, she pants, “Oh yeah?”

“Bloody right. No monthly _and_ sensitive breasts? My dreams were just answered.”

“Sensitive and _painful_ ,” she winces as she pulls the blanket up to cover them.

“Shall I take another look, love? Perhaps I can make them feel better again?”

She rolls her eyes with a smile on her face at his repeated words before she smacks him in the chest. In return, he rolls over and starts to tickle her, she tries to fight him off, but her muscles are still tingling and weak from her three orgasms, so he gets the better of her.

Her giggles and his laughs bounce off the walls and not for the first time, she thanks whoever is listening that their son is a heavy sleeper.

* * *

Emma finishes up her report just as Kate comes walking into her office.

“Hey, Emma.”

She smiles up at the girl. “Hey! What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at home resting?”

Kate lets out a chuckle as she struggles to sit down in the seat across from her causing Emma to jump up and help her.

“I wanted to stop in and say hi… thank you,” Kate says with a sigh. “Boy, am I ready for this kid to get out of me!”

Emma laughs and sits back at her desk, Kate is nine months pregnant and she looks like she’s about to pop at any time.

“I remember feeling like that the last month with Henry. I was so big, I felt like I was carrying a loaded suit case with me everywhere I went.”

Kate giggles and nods as she puts a brown paper bag on the desk.

“Exactly. Plus, Colin is so over protective, sometimes I just want to strangle him! Every time I take a step he’s worried I’m going to fall over or something. It’s sweet, but I need a break,” she explains with a shake of her head. “I hope you don’t mind I stopped by. I knew he was out and wanted to catch up for lunch.”

“Not at all! Let me get my lunch from the fridge.”

They eat their lunch together and catch up, Kate’s been on maternity leave for the past two weeks and she laughs as Kate tells her how bored she is. They talk about the engagement, and she blushes as Kate gushes over the ring Killian got her. When he proposed, she didn’t have anyone to tell except Roger and Colin, who are men and did nothing but give their quick congrats before they went back to work. She admits it feels nice to have someone actually be excited for her who isn’t her twelve-year-old son.

“So, how did he do it? Was it romantic? Killian seems like such a gentleman, I bet it was extremely romantic!”

With a smile, she starts to tell her the story of how he proposed only to trail off halfway through when her stomach starts to turn. Her mouth begins to sweat a little as she looks down at her salad. All of a sudden, she feels sick to her stomach and jumps up to race to the bathroom.

“Are you okay?”

Her lunch and what was left of her breakfast empties from her stomach and she feels terrible.

Hearing the door open behind her, Kate gasps, “Oh, Emma. What’s the matter?”

Groaning, she wipes her mouth, “I thought that chicken smelled weird.”

Kate hands her a wet towel. “Poor thing! You probably got food poisoning!”

She flinches at the thought as she stands and wipes the back of her neck.

“You should go,” Kate says as she rubs her bulging stomach. “I’ll cover here until Colin gets back.”

Shaking her head, she tries to argue, “Kate… I couldn’t do that. You’re on maternity leave—”

Kate places her hands on her shoulders and insists, “Em, it’s fine. Colin sent a text already saying he’s on his way back. If it’s food poisoning, this won’t be the last of it, go home and get some rest.”

She finally relents and leaves the office with a smile and a thank you. Before she goes homes, she decides to head to the bar to let Killian know since he didn’t answer his phone.

“Hey, Emma! How are you?” Barry calls out from behind the bar.

There aren’t many customers, two old men at the bar, probably regulars, and a couple sitting in a booth.

“Good, Barry. How are you?”

He gives her a wide smile and shrugs, “Can’t complain. Congratulations on the engagement!”

“Thank you. It was a bit of a surprise.”

He chuckles as he wipes the bar down. “Killian was a nervous wreck before it happened. I tried to tell him there was nothing to worry about, but you know him.”

“Yeah,” she says with a little laugh. “He’s a worrier.”

“He’s in the office if you want to head back.”

She thanks him and walks back to find Killian sitting at the desk on the phone. He gives her a wide smile and holds his finger up as she closes the door behind her and takes a deep breath. She doesn’t feel sick anymore but she does feel a little weak.

“Aye… I’ll take care of it… Cheers, mate.” He hangs up the phone and stands. “This is a pleasant surprise. Slow day?”

He leans in to give her a kiss, but she turns her head so that his lips find her cheek instead. When his brow goes together she motions to her mouth.

“I threw up at work. I haven’t been able to brush my teeth yet.”

His face shows concern before he reaches up to feel her forehead. “You’re feeling ill?”

“I think it’s food poisoning, the chicken in my salad didn’t smell right. I just wanted to let you know and ask if you could possibly leave a little earlier to pick Henry up from school?”

He kisses her forehead. “Of course, love. Go home and get some rest. Would you like me to bring you anything?”

Her stomach starts to turn again and she shakes her head. “No. Ugh, I think I’ll just lay down. I’ll see you when you get home. Love you.”

She leans up to kiss his cheek before he responds.

“Love you, too.”

* * *

Emma reaches up to flush the toilet and lets out a sigh. The food poisoning turned bug is obviously not going away on its own and she has to do something about it before Henry and Killian cause a revolt. If they find out she’s still sick they will try to drag her to the doctors against her will and she’ll just end up, most likely, killing both of them. Because what does it matter that you carried a child around in your stomach for nine months then raised him alone for eleven years when his new stepdad is around? They both gang up on her constantly and she always ends up losing the argument.

When she’s done brushing her teeth, she moves back to the kitchen to start the cleanup from breakfast. Henry is at school and Killian is out on his morning jog but he could be back at any minute and she refuses to have him find her throwing up again.

It’s bad enough when he wakes up to it in the middle of the night.

She’s just finished the dishes when he finally walks into the apartment, hair stuck to his forehead from sweat and cheeks tinted from blood flow.

“’Ello, fiancé.” He says as he pulls his ear phones out of his ears and walks down the hall.

She blushes as her eyes move down to her left hand where his diamond ring sits. It’s been over a week since he proposed and it still feels like a dream.

Emma Swan is getting married, words she never thought she’d hear.

“Have a good run?”

He hums and leans in to give her a light kiss before he turns to the fridge. She watches as he bends over to grab a fresh bottle of water out and can’t help but rake her eyes over him. He’s wearing black mesh pants and a gray long sleeved thermal that fits tight against his toned arms and chest which causes her heart to speed up and her skin to heat.

He stands up fully as he gulps down the water. She licks her lips when a bead of it misses his mouth and runs down his chin because she wants to trace the trail with her tongue. All feelings of sickness wash away and are replaced with feelings of lust.

Feeling her eyes on him, he looks over at her with his eyebrow up. “Like what you see, Swan?”

When she nods he gives her a smirk as he licks his bottom lip. She takes a step to him and fists his shirt in her hand before she pulling him to her. The water bottle drops to the floor and his arms wrap around her waist while he moans into her kiss.

“I want you,” she whispers against his lips.

Chuckling at her eagerness, he asks, “I thought you weren’t feeling well?”

Just last night he tried to start something between them, but she had just thrown up and had a headache, so she turned him down and opted for taking something to help her sleep.

Shaking her head, she reaches down to palm his growing erection, smiling when she hears his gasp, “I could be feeling much better if—”

She doesn’t get to finish her sentence because he kisses her so hard, they stumble back until she is leaning on the counter.

“Bedroom?” he asks against her lips.

When she shakes her head, he groans and yanks her pants down before he lifts her up onto the counter. He barely has time to pull his own down before she wraps her hand around his hard cock and widens her legs.

“Gods!” he hisses as he enters her. “You’re so wet, love.”

She moans and her head slams back against the cabinet, his pace is quick as she wraps her legs around his waist while her hands claw at his back.

“Killian!”

His right hand moves up to yank her tank top down before his lips wrap around her nipple, flicking his tongue while he sucks. Moaning loudly, she reaches up to tangle her fingers in his hair, causing him to groan while she squeezes her thighs against his waist.

Their moans and the sounds of their skin slapping together echo throughout the apartment as he continues to pump into her.

Her skin is on fire as his mouth leaves her breast to trail up her chest to her throat while he gasps, ‘’Bloody hell, Emma.”

He kisses up her jaw until his lips are brushing against hers, their eyes lock and she reaches up to hold onto his face.

“I love you,” she moans.

“Love you,” he mumbles. “Love you so bloody much.”

Lifting his stunted arm to the top of the fridge for leverage, his right arm wraps around her waist, pulling her closer. She can feel her orgasm approach as her body starts to shake.

“So tight and wet for me,” he pants. “Want to keep myself buried in you always.”

His dirty words along with the new angle does her in and she throws her head back, crying out as she comes undone.

Moving his lips to her ear, he groans, “That’s a good girl, give it to me.”

As she comes down from her high, his pumps become faster before they turn more sporadic. He pulls back and looks down at where they are connected and she knows it won’t be long until he’s done. She bites her lip and takes her hands out of his hair to move over her exposed chest.

His eyes follow and when her fingers brush over her own nipples he moves even faster.

Grunting, “More!”

She tweaks her nipples just before he lets out a loud cry as he empties himself into her. When he finally stops, his cock still twitching inside of her, his upper body collapses onto her and he rests his forehead against her collarbone.

They both stay that way for a few seconds as they try to catch their breath and let their hearts calm down. She smiles when she feels his lips kiss her neck before he eventually leans up.

“Once we marry, can we start every day like this?”

She giggles before kissing him softly, but when her legs start to shake, he pulls out and helps her off of the counter.

“That’s very okay with me since you’re so… how do you put it… devilishly handsome.”

He chuckles and pulls her to him once she’s fully dressed.

Her fingers reach up to play with the charms hanging from his necklace as he presses his lips to her forehead and whispers, “I’m glad you finally agree.”

Smiling up at him, she takes a step back and stumbles when a wave of dizziness hits her. Before she can fall, he catches her around the waist.

Voice laced with concern, “How are you feeling?”

She lets out a sigh. “I’m fine. I just got a little light headed there for a second.”

He hums before his lips move back to her forehead, “You still don’t feel warm. I’d feel better if you went to the doctors though.”

Rolling her eyes, she moves out of his arms. “I don’t need to go to the doctors.”

He sighs, she knows that he doesn’t like the fact that she won’t go, but she doesn’t have to, it’s just a bug and it will be out of her system soon.

“Will you at least rest today? I’ll be home from the pub in time to pick Henry up from school so you can spend the day in bed.” She opens her mouth to argue that she’s been resting when he steps to her and puts his hand on her jaw. “Cleaning our entire flat isn’t resting. Emma, please. You won’t go to the doctors, take one day... for me.”

The soft pleading look on his face melts her heart and she finds herself nodding and whispering okay.

He makes her promise to get into bed after she finishes in the kitchen before he whispers his love for her and moves to the bathroom. She has a hard time keeping the smile off of her face because for the first time in her life, she is unbelievably happy and she can’t wait to see what her future holds.

* * *

* * *

Killian is behind the bar when he walks over to check his phone. The pub is slow like usual for the day shift, only three customers, but he still has an hour until he can leave. He lets out a sigh and puts his phone down when he hears the pub door open.

When he looks up, he sees a man with light hair walk in wearing a dark button down shirt, and a black leather jacket.

“Help you, mate?”

The man looks up at him and his face breaks out into a smile before he nods and walks up to the bar. “Ugh, yeah, I’ll take whatever you have on tap.”

He moves behind the bar to get the man's order, and when he delivers his drink, he can’t help but stare. There’s something familiar about him but he can’t put his finger on it.

“What brings you in here today?”

The man sighs as he moves to remove his jacket. “I came in to talk to you, actually.”

“Me?” He nods. “Do I know you?”

He lifts the beer to his lips and takes a sip before he leans his elbows on the bar. “You do.”

Killian’s brow goes together as he tries to remember the man that sits in front of him. When nothing comes, he shakes his head and the man speaks again.

“Trust me, Killian. We know each other.”

When the man says his name he stands up straight. He once again looks him over but it’s not until he smiles that he realizes it’s strangely familiar.

“Apologies, mate. You seem to have me at a disadvantage…”

“How’s Emma?”

_Emma._

That’s what it is, the man that’s sitting in front of him shares a striking resemblance to his fiancé.

He lets out a chuckle. “Figured out we look alike, huh? People do say that about us.”

“How do you know Emma?”

The man takes another sip of his beer. “She’s family.”

“I’m the only family Emma has.”

A flash of guilt crosses the man’s face before he looks back up at him. “That’s not true. She has family, she just doesn’t remember them, neither do you.”

Killian takes a step back at that. “What?”

He sighs and runs his hand through his hair. “Name’s David by the way.”

He crosses his arms over his chest. “Okay, David. You say you know me and that you’re related to my fiancé but—”

David blinks before his face turns to shock. “Fiancé?!”

“Aye.”

His fist clenches around the chilled glass, “Aren’t you supposed to get her _father’s_ permission before asking her hand in marriage?”

Killian snorts. “Oh yes, I’ll be sure to ask the coward of a man who _abandoned_ her on the side of the road right after I give him exactly what he deserves.”

David’s face drops, a flash of what seems to be guilt forms, before he mumbles, “That was never the intention.”

Killian’s eyebrow arches, silently asking for an explanation, but David just looks down at his hands. They both stay silent for a few moments before the man finally speaks again.

“You two are really getting married?”

“Remind me again how that is any concern of yours!” Killian hisses

They stare at each other for a little before David shakes his head and takes another sip of his beer, mumbling almost to himself, “Why does that not surprise me?”

His jaw clicks and he cracks his neck. “Alright, you’ve peaked my interest, what do you want?”

“Somethings happened. Emma’s family needs her.”

Killian shakes his head. “I already told you—”

“And I told you,” David cuts him off. “You both don’t remember… and neither does Henry.”

“How do you…”

“Know about Emma and Neal’s son?”

Killian shoots a murderous glare when it finally hits him. David, or whoever he was, is there because of Neal Cassidy.

“He is _not_ Neal’s son,” he growls. “And if you’re here for him, tell him to stay away. After what he did to her, he’s lucky I haven’t hunted him down yet.”

“What he did was—”

“Was leave her to rot in prison for his own crime like a selfish coward!”

David’s eyes snap up and his face shows rage. “He did _what_?”

Killian chuckles and leans against the back bar while crossing his arms. “Leave that part out did he?”

He watches as David clenches his jaw before he downs the rest of his beer.

“I knew things happened… that he left, but I never knew…” He shakes his head before he stands and picks up his coat. He reaches into the pocket and pulls out a brown envelope. “I’m sorry to do this to you, Killian,” he places the envelope on the bar. “There’s an address in there. If you want to talk, this is where you can find me.”

Killian leans forward with a finger pointing. “No. You’re going to tell me why you’re here and how you know about _my_ son.”

David gives him a half smirk. “Your son?”

“Aye. Mine, _not_ Neal’s. Is he trying to be in Henry’s life? How does he even know about him?”

“I’m not here about Neal,” he explains as he puts his jacket on and motions to the envelope. “Everything you need to know is in there.”

Before Killian can say anything else, David turns and walks out of the bar. He can feel his body shaking and all he wants to do is follow the man out the door and force him to tell him where Neal Cassidy is so that he could give him the justice he deserves. But he doesn’t, because he was just thrown a curveball. If David knows Neal and knows about Henry, that means that Neal knows about Henry and that changes everything. His eyes move to the envelope. He stares at it for a couple seconds before he snatches it up and rips it open with his teeth.

The first thing he pulls out is a piece of paper.

**89 Wooster Street** **  
** **New York, NY**

Before he can inspect the rest of the contents, the pub phone rings.

“Aye, Paddy’s Pub.”

“Killian?”

His instincts go on high alert when he hears his son's voice on the other end. “Henry? What’s wrong?”

“Avery asked if I can sleep over tonight, can I?”

Killian lets out a sigh of relief as he shoulders the phone. “Did you talk to your mother?”

“She isn’t answering.”

“It’s a school night, lad.”

“I know! I’ll come to school with Avery in the morning. Please?”

Rolling his eyes, he looks down at the envelope in his hand before he pulls the rest of the contents out only to find that they are photographs. The one on top is a picture of Henry and Emma at a table in front of a wall with the word ‘Storybrooke’ painted on the back, and the next photo is one of them at the Boston airport.

“Hey, lad. How did you and your mother come to New York when you moved here?”

“We drove… why?”

Killian leaf’s through them and shakes his head, “It’s not important…”

He stops when he gets to the last photo and his heart starts to pound in his chest.

“Killian, are you there?’’

Henry’s voice breaks him out of his thoughts. There is so much going on he doesn’t know where to start. He knows that he needs answers and that Emma needs to know what’s happening but it would be best if Henry isn’t around when he tells her.

“Aye. Ugh,” he continues to stare at the photo. “Alright, you can stay out just make sure you do all your homework.”

“Yes! Thank you, Killian!”

“And call your mother again. If she doesn’t answer, leave a voicemail. You know she doesn’t like it when you do things without informing her.”

Henry assures him he will, says thanks again and hangs up. His hand starts to shake as he stares at the photo, it’s a far away shot, but he knew what it was as soon as he saw it.

It’s a picture of himself, dressed head to toe in black leather, on the deck of a beautiful ship, with what looked like a silver hook on his left arm instead of his prosthetic. When he turns the photo over and sees the date, his stomach drops.

The date on the back was four months before he met Emma.

_Bloody hell._

* * *

Killian races up the steps of the apartment complex with the photos in his back pocket. He knows only one thing, whoever this David person is, he has a lot of explaining to do. When he finally reaches the correct door, he bangs so hard, the wood trembles and with every passing second his anger grows.

When the it finally opens, he pushes past David and lets himself in with a growl, “We need to talk.”

“Sure, come right in.” David says with a sigh as he closes the door.

Reaching into his back pocket, he pulls out the photographs and holds them up. “What the bloody hell are these?” he throws them onto a table and points. “Henry and Emma never lived in a town called Storybrooke and I was never dressed as a pirate on some bloody ship!”

David chuckles. “They did live in Storybrooke before they moved here and, ugh, yes you did, all the time actually. I always did wonder how you were comfortable wearing all that leather.”

“Emma was in Boston before she moved here!”

He shakes his head and takes a step forward. “We were all in Storybrooke a year and a half ago until something happened and we all had to leave…”

“Leave?”

“You went with Henry and Emma to look after them… protect them.”

Killian stares at David for what seems like an eternity before he shakes his head and wipes his lips with a huff, “You’re insane! I never knew Emma before she moved here.”

David sighs and runs his hand through his hair. “Look, I told you already… you two me—”

“In Storybrooke, aye?”

“You two actually didn’t meet in Storybrooke…” David trails off and winces as he finishes. “You met in the Enchanted Forest.”

Both men are silent for a few seconds and David rolls his eyes when Killian starts to laugh hysterically.

“You’re really off your rocker, aren’t you? Emma and I met in the Enchanted Forest? What is that, some sort of Disney ride? Was Snow White and The Seven Dwarves there, too?”

“Actually…”

He stops laughing and shakes his head, “Whatever you’re on, I don’t care. Just stay the hell away from my family!”

He moves to leave, he doesn’t care if there are photos of him, Emma and Henry in a town called Storybrooke. They are probably photo shopped anyway, but he stops when David starts to talk.

“You loved her back there… in Storybrooke, you loved Emma there, too.”

Clenching his jaw, he looks back at the man as he continues.

“You gave up on the one quest that kept you going for years just to help us… to help her get Henry back when he was taken. You saved my life and the lives of every person on that ship, and when she was being forced to leave, you offered her a chance to have someone, all so that her and Henry wouldn’t be alone.”

His chest starts to heave up and down as he listens to David’s words.

“But when that person couldn’t go, he told you to, because he _knew_ that if he couldn’t be with them, to protect them, that you would… with your life, because you loved her. So you gave up everything, your old life, your memories, _everything_ that you knew… just to be with them.”

He looks down at the ground because though he hates to admit it, he can see himself doing everything that David was telling him. There isn’t anything he wouldn’t do for them.

Killian shakes his head, his voice filled with doubt, “It’s not possible. How could we forget all of this?”

“There’s an explanation…”

“Not one that makes sense!” He growls.

They stare at each other for a couple seconds before David moves over to the living room. He reaches into a bag and pulls out a small vial.

“It will if you drink this,” he explains as he holds the vial up.

Killian snorts. “You actually think I’ll drink that?”

“If you want to know the truth about your past… about _Emma’s_ … you will.” He stares at the vial before his eyes move back up to David who holds his arms out. “I’m not trying to hurt you, Killian. I’m especially not trying to hurt Emma or Henry, I came all this way to save them. I can tell you sense that part of what I’m saying could be true, you wouldn’t still be here if you didn’t.”

They are both silent for a couple seconds before David takes another step closer to him and holds up the vial.

“Drink it, Killian. If you won’t do it for your own past, do it for Emma. She deserves to know the truth.”

He breathes through his nose, because part of him wants to turn and walk out, he wants to forget about David and his photos and go home to his family, he wants to marry Emma, adopt Henry officially and start to make their family grow.

But he can’t… it’s not the right thing to do.

Before he can second guess himself, Killian steps forward and snatches the vial out of David’s hand. He pulls the top off with his teeth and spits it on the ground. The liquid is cold as it flows down his throat but he doesn’t have time to really process it, because within seconds, his eyes squeeze shut as memories come flooding back to him.

Liam... The Jolly Roger… Milah… Rumplestiltskin… Neverland… The Evil Queen… Cora… Emma.

_“Would you do that?”_

_“Aye.”_

Killian’s eyes open when the flashes stop and suddenly, everything snaps into place.

Heart beating wildly in his chest, he breaths out in shock, “Charming.”

The Prince smiles. “Welcome back.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ummm.... I love you all? I'm going to hide now.


	17. Chapter Seventeen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so you guys talked me into it. here’s the new chapter two days early *wiggles finger* but no more! you have to wait until NEXT friday now. i hope you are all happy. ;-p but, at least this is the longest chapter yet :D
> 
> double line breaks mean POV change

** Chapter Seventeen **

Killian’s not sure how long they sit in silence, or how long he stares off into space before a glass full of amber liquid appears before his face. With his old memories came back the now familiar pull of the darkness and the thirst for revenge, it’s almost as if the weight was put back on his shoulders the instant his memories came back.

“Thanks,” he whispers before he takes the glass.

David lets out a sigh and sits down. “I’m sorry to do this to you, Hook.”

He flinches at his moniker and gulps down the rum. “What happened?”

“We don’t know,” David answers with a shrug. “All we remember is saying goodbye to Emma at the town line, then we woke back up in Storybrooke. We weren’t even sure that we left, but then new people started to pop up, people that weren’t there before… It would only make sense that we left at some point.”

Killian’s brow goes together. “Then how did you know how much time has passed?”

David chuckles as rubs the back of his neck. “Ugh, well, there is a new addition to my family. Emma has a little brother… Leo. He’s about a year old.”

Killian’s eyes widen and David gives him a nod. A breath of air escapes his lungs and he shakes his head, Storybrooke is back and Emma not only has parents, but a new little brother.

“How long have you been back?”

David takes a sip of his drink. “About a week.”

“Wait, you’ve only been back a week and you have a one-year-old?” David nods. “I don’t know much about pregnancy but isn’t that… impossible?”

He sighs. “It is and we don’t have our memories to know what happened… but we know he’s ours.”

“How is that?”

David looks over at him with a small smile, “Because he looks just like Emma.”

Putting his face in his hand, Killian groans, “Bloody hell.”

He has no idea how he’s going to explain all of this to her or if she will even believe him. As far as she knows, her parents left her on the side of the road and she’s been alone ever since.

No, not alone, she has Henry and him.

“How were you able to scramble together a potion for me but none for yourselves?”

David huffs and rubs his palms on his jeans. “Regina. She was making the memory potion when we were attacked. All the potions along with the ingredients were destroyed except for one, we barely made it out alive. We talked it over, and we knew if there was anyone out there that could stop whoever was doing this, it would be Emma. So I took the first chance I got and came here…”

“You should have given it to her.”

“Are you telling me that if you left this apartment without taking the memory potion you would have let me anywhere near them? I was a stranger to you, Hook. I may not know Emma like this, but she’s still my daughter and I know that if her fiancé would have told her there was a crazy man trying to get near her and Henry, she would have agreed with you and I would have never seen them.”

His eyes close at the word fiancé. Memories of their morning flash through his mind, the way Emma felt around him, her moans in his ear, her whispered words of love.

“Have you two been engaged the whole time?”

Killian bites back a sob. They are engaged, he asked her to marry him and she said yes. No, the faked memory version of her said yes, not the real Emma.

He sniffs as he tries to hold back his tears and shakes his head. “No. I just asked her last week… it was our one-year anniversary.”

David raises an eyebrow. “That’s it? I thought—”

“No,” Killian interrupts him. “I told Regina not to make us a fake family. She made me her neighbor, I lived next door.”

“So you guys progressed on your own, then?”

He lifts his glass and downs the rest of his drink. “I think that’s irrelevant now, wouldn’t you say?”

David looks at him in confusion, “Why do you think that?”

Killian throws him a glare before he stands and moves to the window. When he doesn’t speak, he hears David put his glass down and approach.

“Hook, you two spent a year and a half together, fell in love and got engaged. Are you telling me none of that matters to you now?”

“I’m not the one I’m worried about, Dave,” he whispers. “Until she gets her memories, she’s going to expect for things to stay the same and I can’t do that. I can’t take advantage of the fact that she loves me now without her memories when she didn’t love me when she had them.”

When he feels David’s eyes on him he looks over to see him staring with a look of wonder on his face.

“You really do love her?”

He thinks about the love he had for her in Storybrooke and Neverland, how he wanted so much to be with her, but he refused to stand in the way, and wanted their family have a shot, then he thinks about the love he had for her in New York, how he broke down her walls, how she let him in…

Voice thick with emotion he answers, “I’d go to the end of the world for her.”

David gives him a slight nod before he turns back to the living room and picks up a bag.

“I was able to grab some things and bring them with me, since we only had one memory potion...”

David reaches into the bag and pulls out his hook. The sight of his silver appendage gives him mixed feelings, one side looks at it with longing, though the way he came to get the hook was tragic, it’s become a part of him, but the other side looks at it with dread. That hook represents someone that definitely isn’t the man Emma Swan fell in love with and agreed to marry.

Killian takes his hook and stares at it as David dumps the remainder of the contents onto the table. He itches to click it back in place but knows that he can’t until Emma and Henry have their memories back.

“I don’t know if any of these will help Emma… everything Regina gave me was for you. I just… I couldn't go to her first.” He shakes his head and mumbles more to himself, “I couldn’t bare her not knowing me.”

He gives the Prince a slight nod in understanding, he wouldn’t be able to bare it if Henry-

A piece of wood falls out of the bag and drops down onto the table breaking him out of his thoughts. He quickly hangs his hook from his belt loop on the back of jeans and leans down to pick it up as his throat tightens.

“That’s from…”

“The Jolly,” Killian whispers.

“We thought maybe something from your ship might work if the hook didn’t.”

He gives David a nod and puts the piece of wood in his pocket as he spots a pink sea shell before he picks it up with a smile.

“I don’t know why I grabbed that. Snow said a sea shell wasn’t going to help…”

“It’s not the shell that’s going to help us, mate. It’s what the shell is going to bring to us.” When David looks at him in confusion Killian holds it up. “If the lot of you _were_ brought back it had to have been by a new curse, which means the walls are down, transport between the realms is possible again. My ship, she’s in Storybrooke?” David nods. “In my quarters I have a vial of memory potion. I always kept remedies handy in case of emergencies. If we can get the Jolly here, we’ll be able to get the potion and give it to Emma.”

“That’s great! But wait…”

“What’s wrong?”

“There’s something you should know… when we went to your ship to get all of this, it wasn’t vacant. Blackbeard was there.” Killian’s face goes hard. “It seems he may have taken it back in the Enchanted Forest. Luckily, Regina was able to hold him while we grabbed everything. I’m sorry we didn’t have time to take it back for you.”

He cracks his neck and clenches his jaw. “Bloody wanker.”

There’s a knock at the door which causes both Killian and David to look at each other in confusion.

“You expecting someone, mate?”

David shakes his head. “The only person that knows I’m here is you.”

There’s another knock and David moves to grab a bat next to the couch while Killian puts the shell down and takes a step to answer it. When the Prince stands behind the door, he gives him a nod and Killian opens it, his brow goes together when he sees a man dressed in a suit with shaggy brown hair standing on the other side.

“Can I help you?”

The man gives him a sick smirk. “What’s the matter, don’t recognize me, _Hook_?”

He racks his brain as he eyes the man up and down, he usually has a good memory when it comes to faces, but it’s not until the man gives him a glare that he finally realizes who he is.

With a growl, he grabs Walsh by the jacket, pulls him into the apartment and throws him to the ground as David slams the door shut.

“How did you know?” he hisses and Walsh just laughs.

“Who is this?” David asks as he stands over Walsh, keeping him on the ground.

“This wanker sold Emma an end table when we first met, tried asking her out on a date but she refused. He called me Hook then, too.”

“Imagine my surprise,” Walsh spits out. “I was told Emma and Henry crossed the line alone, all people were accounted for. But no one thought to look for her handless puppy dog.”

Killian growls and takes a step forward but stops when David puts his hand on his shoulder.

“Wait. If he was sent here to watch over Emma, that means he’s working for whoever attacked us in Storybrooke. We can figure this out before we even get back.”

Walsh laughs before his pupils change to a red color. He leaps up off the ground and attempts to attack, but they duck away which causes Walsh to crash into the wall behind them. A loud piercing scream can be heard throughout the apartment before Walsh transforms into some sort of winged creature.

“Really?” Killian growls.

The creature flies forward, David jumps in front of it, bringing his arms above his head with the bat in his hands, but the creature grabs it. They wrestle for a few moments before Killian grabs a chair and cracks it over the creatures back causing it to fall the ground and shake its head. David swings the bat down, crashing it onto the monster’s head. Another shriek rings out before it crumbles to dust.

Both men stand there panting as they look at the ash on the ground.

“What the blazes was that?”

“I don’t know,” David says before he walks back to open the door and checks the hallway. He closes it and turns back to Killian. “But if he knew we were here that means—”

“Whoever is doing this knows we’re attempting to bring the Savior back.”

David nods. “My guess, they don’t want that to happen. We need to get Emma her memories back, _now_.”

Killian moves to pick up the shell. “I’ll take this, you… go take watch over Henry. He’s at his friend’s house. We don’t know if Walsh was working with anyone and I don’t want to chance them going after him.”

“What about Emma?”

Hiding the shell in his jacket, he shakes his head. “She’s been under the weather the past couple days, she’s back at our flat.”

“And you think she’s just going to stay cooped up in an apartment all day just because she’s sick?”

Killian opens the door and clenches his jaw. “She promised me she would.”

David gives him a sad smile before they walk head out into the hall.

“Wait,” David stops him. “I don’t understand. What’s the shell going to bring to you?”

Licking his lips, he turns to walk down the hall and murmurs, “An old friend.”

* * *

Killian stands at the shore of the abandoned beach as he stares at the shell in his hand. If his feelings were mixed before about getting Emma her memories back, they were just made abundantly clear after he and David were attacked. She needs to remember and they have to leave their happy life in New York and go back to Storybrooke.

No matter what the cost may be.

He lifts the shell to his lips and blows, a loud horn sound can be heard before he lowers it to his side. Seconds later, a red haired female pops up from the ocean.

When she spots him, her face breaks out into a smile. “Hook?”

He smirks. “Hello, Ariel.”

She looks around and her face scrunches up in confusion. “Where are we?”

“New York City.”

She looks down in the water before back up with wide eyes, “This is a strange world.”

With a small smile, he calls out, “I need your help, I’m afraid.”

Ariel rolls her eyes as the waves cause her to bob in the water. “I haven’t seen you in years and this is how you call upon me?”

He shrugs. “Well… it was I who allowed Prince take refuge on my ship when you couldn’t speak, so I thought I would cash in on that little favor.”

The mermaid chuckles. “Yes, okay. What can I do for you?”

“My ship, there’s something in my quarters that I need to acquire. Can you open a portal and bring it here?”

Ariel nods. “Yes. But I’ll need something from the Jolly Roger to know exactly where it is.”

Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out the piece of wood and holds it up. “Piece of the rigging. Prince Charming was ever so kind to bring me a little souvenir.”

The mermaid swims as close to the shore as possible while he moves forward, his boots getting wet from the water, and tosses it to her. The piece of wood flies through the air before it lands into her hands. She gives him a smile before she turns back out to the ocean. The waves start to pick up before they swirl around in a circle, purple smoke invading the air as the sails of the Jolly Roger begin to appear.

A wide grin splits his face… she sure is a sight for sore eyes.

“Now that’s a ship fit for a pirate.”

He strips himself of his jacket and throws it on the sand along with the shell and his prosthetic before he grabs his hook from his jeans and clicks it into place. An overwhelming feeling of familiarity washes over him as he stares at the silver appendage before he moves into the water. When it gets too deep for him to walk, Ariel swims up and puts her arm around his waist to help him.

“Up close, she’s even more beautiful than I remember.”

“You do realize you’re talking about a boat?”

“Ship!” he hisses.

Rolling her eyes, she asks, “So how are you going to get what you need, Captain?”

“I’m going to distract Blackbeard and you, lass, are going to use that fancy bracelet of yours and go down to my quarters. In the cabinet where all the tonics are, there is a small blue vial. Grab it and bring it to me.”

“Okay. But how are you going to distract Blackbeard?”

They swim up to the ship and he takes hold of a rope hanging from the side. When he’s secure he turns back to her and gives her a smirk.

“I’ll show you.”

Just as he gets to the top, Ariel calls his name and he looks down, a cutlass appears from the water and she tosses it to him.

“That’s Eric’s, I expect that back when you’re done.”

He jumps over the side and smiles when his feet hit the deck. His shoulders go square and he feels like himself for the first time since he got his memories back.

“Who goes there!” a deep voice calls from below.

“The rightful Captain of the Jolly Roger! Now, if the coward who tried stealing her from me would kindly show his face, I’ll give him the punishment he deserves!”

Blackbeard walks up from below deck with a smirk on his face. He’s dressed in more modern clothes and his long curly hair is tied back.

“Gladly. But it’s not me who’ll be punished. You want your ship back? Then take it.”

Killian smirks. “With pleasure.”

Blackbeard attacks with his cutlass and Killian quickly knocks him back with his hook. The sounds of their blades clanging together echo in the winds while he laughs. His blood is pumping, his adrenaline is high and for the first time, he feels confident. Confident that he can have it all, he will get the Jolly back, he will get Emma and Henry back their memories, and he and Emma will still be together. He loves her and she loves him, memories of their past can’t hurt that.

“Word on the waterways is Captain Hook had gone soft,” Blackbeard gripes as they pull back from their fighting and circle each other. “Gave up the life of a pirate for a woman.”

Killian growls and swings his sword. “The only thing soft will be your guts spilling on this deck. I’d never give up the Jolly Roger without a fight.”

Blackbeard grunts as Killian knocks him back with his elbow.

“You think you know the ship?” he hisses.

“Oh, every inch of it… I assure you.” Blackbeard answers with a sick smile.

He takes a step back and Killian all but laughs.

“If that was the case, you’d know not to step there!” Killian slams his foot down on the deck causing a board to shoot up. Blackbeard’s foot falls and he stumbles back and gets stuck. “Oh, I’ve been meaning to fix that.” He taunts as he holds the end of his cutlass up to Blackbeard's throat.

Blackbeard glares daggers at him. “Finish it!”

Killian growls. “Fancy a shave, do we? Well, I’ll be happy to oblige.”

He pulls his cutlass back but before he can throw it down, he hears Ariel holler.

“Wait!” Both men snap their gaze over to her. “The vial isn’t there. You have to get him to tell you where it is!”

Killian growls and takes a step forward. “You heard the lady. Where is it?”

“Do you mean this?” Blackbeard asks with a smirk as pulls the memory potion from his pocket.

He lunges forward to grab it but Blackbeard is quick. He pulls the top off of the vial and holds it out over the side of the ship.

“No!” Killian cries and Blackbeard smirks.

“It seems we find ourselves in a bit of stalemate, don’t we, Hook?” He growls and lifts his hook in the air. “You kill me and this vial dumps into the sea.”

He freezes, if Blackbeard dumps that vial into the water all hopes of Emma getting her memories back are lost until they can find another way. Which means the town of Storybrooke remains in danger until that moment arrives. His chest heaves as he lowers his hook and takes a step back.

“Whatever ransom you want, Blackbeard, I’ll pay it.”

The man laughs and shakes his head. “Money’s not what I’m after.”

Ariel stomps over and stands next to Killian. “Then what is it that you want?”

A sick smile spreads across Blackbeard’s face and he feels all the confidence he had just moments before wash away, because whatever Blackbeard is about to offer, it’s going to be something Killian will have to live with for the rest of his life.

* * *

* * *

The clock chirps and wakes Emma from her sleep. When she opens her eyes she’s surprised to find the sun starting to set outside and the apartment completely quiet. She spent the entire day in bed as promised and she’s glad for it because she didn’t realize how tired she was until she laid her head down on the pillow.

Climbing out of the bed, her muscles aching, she rubs the back of her neck and walks out of the room.

“Guys?” she calls out but is surprised when she doesn’t get an answer.

She checks Henry’s room but it’s as empty as the rest of the apartment. Her cell phone beeps from the kitchen and she lets out a sigh of relief when she sees the voicemail from Henry.

_“Hey mom it’s me. I just wanted to let you know that I’m sleeping over Avery’s tonight. He asked and when I couldn’t get a hold of you, I called and asked Killian. He said it was okay, I promise. But he also told me to call and leave you a voicemail so you don’t freak out. I’ll just go to school with Avery in the morning. Hope you’re feeling better, love you! Bye.”_

Her brow goes together as she puts the phone down. It’s a school night and they usually didn’t allow Henry to stay out but she has a feeling there’s another reason for Killian okaying it. He’s still upset about the fact that she’s sick and probably figures with them being alone, he’ll finally be able to convince her to go to the doctors.

Looking at the time on her phone, she frowns. Killian’s shift at the bar ended hours ago but he isn’t home and there are no missed calls from him.

She tries to call his cell, but there is no answer.

“Hey handsome,” she says after his voicemail beeps. “I’m just wondering where you are. I rested all day, as requested, so you should be happy, but now I’m hungry. I’m having the biggest craving for Hawaiian pizza… among other things only you can deliver, so hurry home! I love you.”

She puts her cell phone down on the counter and pulls out the menu to the local pizza place. Her eyes move over the words as her stomach growls. All sickness she had earlier is gone and she’s starving. When she gets off the phone with the fast food place, she tries not to wince at the price. Sure, Killian can eat, he is a man, but she ordered _a lot_ of food, more than she usually orders when it’s the three of them, but everything looked so good she couldn’t decide.

Fifteen minutes later, the apartment door opens and a big smile appears on her face when she sees Killian.

“Hey you, where have you been?”

He runs his hand through his hair as he walks up to her. “Ugh, I just had some errands to run. Sorry I’m late.”

Her face drops because he’s lying to her, she just knows it, but she’s not sure why. It’s then she takes a good look at him and her eyes go wide. His boots are covered in sand, his jeans have a rip in them, and his blue Henley is soaked.

“What the hell…” she gasps when she sees the small cut on his throat and rushes forward. “Oh my god, Killian.”

“I’m alright, love.”

“No, you’re not. What happened to you? You’re bleeding!”

He lets out a sigh as she takes a hold of his hand and pulls him into the bathroom. When he tries to argue, she gives him a glare and points to the toilet. With a huff, he closes the lid and sits down.

“Are you going to tell me the truth about what happened today?” she asks as she pulls the antiseptics and bandages from the medicine cabinet.

When she looks, she sees him fiddling with his prosthetic hand and she starts to worry. Moving over to him, she stands between his legs and forces him to look up at her.

“Killian, what is going on, you’re acting strange.”

His jaw ticks before he lets out a breath and pulls her to him, wrapping his arms around her waist and squeezing her tight. She brings her hands up to run through his hair, her brows pinching when sand falls out.

“It’s been a long day,” he mumbles against her stomach.

Pressing her lips to the crown of his head, she frowns when he lets out a whimper. “Are you going to tell me about it?”

He gives her another squeeze before she feels him nod against her stomach.

“Just….” He starts before he moves his head to look up at her. “Can it wait?”

His eyes are filled with such sorrow, her heart breaks, so she whispers, “Of course.”

She leans down to give him a kiss and has to hide her shock when he moves so that her lips touch his forehead instead. They stay silent as she cleans the cut on his neck and rubs ointment on it while he stares off at the wall behind her. She can tell there is something wrong, his eyes look dark, almost like there is something haunting him, but his arms never leave her waist. Her skin starts to heat up as his thumb finds it way under her tank top and rubs the small of her back, but it also makes her feel a little better, because whatever is wrong with him, he’s still trying to comfort her.

When she reaches for a bandage, he shakes his head. “That’s not necessary, love.”

She tries to argue with him, but the sound of the doorbell causes him to jump up.

With his face hard, he races out of the bathroom before he growls, “Stay here.”

“What?” she follows after him. “Killian, it’s probably just the food I ordered.”

He stops before they enter the hall and turns back to her. She lets out a gasp when he puts hand and prosthetic on her arms.

“Emma,” her eyes go wide. “Please. Just let me get it.”

“What the hell is going on Killian?” There’s a knock and his body goes stiff. When he doesn’t answer she takes a step back and puts her arms up. “Fine!”

She stomps her way into the kitchen to get them plates and silverware, watching from the corner of her eye as he walks slowly toward the door, almost like he is ready for an attack. She’s about to yell at him when he yanks the door open.

Her eyes roll when she sees his shoulders relax when he realizes it’s just the delivery boy like she said. She slams the cabinet shut and moves the plates to the dining room table.

When he places the bags of food down, she just glares at him when he attempts humor.

“Are we feeding an army, Swan?”

She turns to him and puts her hands on her hips. “What the hell was that about? You acted like someone was about to attack us, I told you it was the food.” He lets out a sigh and runs his hand through his hair, causing bits of sand to fall and she rolls her eyes. “Will you please go take a shower and stop tracking sand all over our house? It’s going to take me forever to clean it up.”

His eyes go wide as he looks down at the floor while she starts to unpack the food and tries not to cry. Since the moment he’s gotten home, he’s acted extremely weird, not to mention his clothes are wet and covered in sand, he has a cut on his throat and he refuses to kiss her. Earlier that morning they could barely keep their hands off each other and now it seems touching her is the last thing he wants.

She sniffles and the next thing she knows, she’s being pulled into his arms.

When she lets out a little sob, he curses and holds her tight, “I’m sorry, love. It’s just... I don’t mean to hurt you.”

She pushes herself away from him and wipes her eyes. Anger courses through her veins at herself, she doesn’t understand why she’s crying, she rarely does, but it seems the last couple days she hasn’t been able to help it, and she tries to force herself to stop.

“Emma…”

“Just go get a shower, Killian.”

He sighs before he leans in and gives her a kiss on the forehead. When he starts to pull away, she reaches up, cups his face and pulls his lips to hers.

Moaning into her mouth, he pulls her close, causing her core to heat up. They tumble back until she’s half sitting on the table with him towering over her. Her hands move to his jacket to push it off, while he rips one of the straps on her tank top down, all the while she thinks she hears him mumble against her lips, _“Once more, gods forgive me, once more.”_ Her hands move down to his belt when the smell of the wings she ordered fills her nostrils, causing her stomach to turn. Her eyes pop open and he must feel her body go stiff because he pulls back and looks down at her with concern.

“Swan, what’s—”

She shoves him away and makes it to the toilet just in time to throw up. She groans as her stomach empties when she feels Killian kneel behind her and pull her hair back.

When she’s finished, he speaks softly, “I think it’s about time you see a doctor, seems to be a bit more than a stomach bug.”

She grunts and leans back into his chest. “I’ll call first thing in the morning.”

Placing a kiss on the back of her head, he helps her stand. He’s oddly quiet while she brushes her teeth and when she quirks her eyebrow at him through the mirror, the smile he gives her in response is forced.

“Okay,” she puts her toothbrush down and turns to him. “Tell me what’s going on. I don’t want to wait.”

He looks down at the floor and leans back against the wall.

“What happened today, why are you acting like this? And why do your clothes look like you decided to take a swim in the ocean.”

He snorts. “That’s only the half of it.”

She gives him a look and he shakes his head before he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a tiny bottle.

“What’s that?”

“It’s…” he struggles with his words. “Do you trust me, Swan?”

Her arms cross and she chuckles. “I’ve agreed to marry you, I think that means I trust you.”

He fists the vial and nods, but he his voice sounds distant, “Aye, that you did.”

They are both silent before she takes a step to him.

“Killian, wh--”

“I need you to drink this, love. I need you to drink this now because we don’t have much time.”

“Time for what?”

He holds the vial up to her and gives her a pleading look. “Please. It’ll all make sense once you drink this.”

She stares at him for a few moments before she finally takes the vial out of his hands. Without thinking too much about it, she moves to grab the cork.

“Wait,” he breathes out as he grabs her arm to stop her.

She looks up at him confused while he stares at her. He looks so worried, so she steps forward and reaches up to rub her thumb over the scar on his cheek.

“If you look at me any harder you’re going to drill a hole in my head.”

He gives her another forced smile. “I just want to remember this, Emma.”

“Remember what?”

His eyes move back and forth between hers. “The way you’re looking at me.”

Her lips curve up. “And how am I looking at you?”

With his brow scrunched together, he whispers, “With love in your eyes.”

She feels her face soften before he lunges forward and fuses his lips to hers. Gasping in surprise, she wraps her arms around his shoulders and moans into his mouth. His hand moves up to her hair and she smiles when he pushes her head closers to his. When they pull apart, she notices a tear run down his face and wipes it away with her fingers. She’s not sure why he’s crying, but something tells her that she’ll know soon.

“I love you, Killian.”

He sucks in a breath and closes his eyes. After a second, she hears him sniff before he pulls back. “Drink, love.”

She gives him another strange look and he just nods. Pulling the cork out of the vial, she brings it up to her mouth and allows the liquid to slide down her throat. Her eyes squeeze shut and she lets out a gasp as she stumbles back.

Like a tidal wave, all of her memories flood back to her at once.

Henry visiting her in Boston… her arrival in Storybrooke… fighting a dragon… breaking the Dark Curse… Hook daring her to kiss him… Regina erasing Storybrooke…

_“I love you, Emma.”_

_“I know.”_

The memories stop and her mouth pops open in shock. Tears cloud her vision as her eyes move up to the man standing before her.

“Hook.”

His jaw clenches but he stays silent. After her a few moments, her eyes move around the bathroom as she takes a step back. She feels like the real world just came flooding back as she woke up from a dream.

A really _good_ dream.

Letting the vial drop to the ground, she puts her hand on her head and starts to breathe heavy.

This can’t be real… none of this can be real.

She’s not sure how it happens, but eventually they move from the bathroom to the dining room table, and there is a bottle of rum that sits between them. Neither have said a word since her memories came back, and she keeps her eyes on her untouched glass of rum.

She tries to grasp what’s just happened but it all seems unreal. The life she knows is a lie, a year and a half, they’ve been gone a year and a half. All the sorrow and pain she felt before she crossed that town line rushes back and she wants to just crumble into a tight ball.

Family.

She has a family… she met her parents… Neal came back into her life.

Up until fifteen minutes ago she believed Neal left her for his own selfish reasons and her only family was Henry and Killian.

Hook.

He’s Hook.

_Captain_ Hook.

They met on a beanstalk while trying to get a compass, she screwed him over, then he screwed her over. They’ve fought each other and worked together side by side as he helped them rescue Henry from the clutches of Pan.

She looks down at her left hand and the sparkle from the diamond on her ring finger catches her eye.

_“So when I win your heart, Emma… and I_ will _win it… it will not be because of any trickery. It will be because you want me.”_

Her jaw clenches as she tries to hold back her tears. She did want him… does want him. But in a matter of minutes her whole life has just come crashing down around her.

Her body feels stiff as she continues to stare at the ring. He told her he loved her before their memories were taken, did he really mean that? Or was he just saying it? Did he feel different now that their memories are back… should she?

There’s a knock at the door and they both look over.

“Who’s that?” she asks softly.

Killian gives her a small smile before he stands and goes to answer it.

When he walks down the hall, her head drops down onto the table and she has to bite her lip to keep from sobbing. They were happy… they were in love… she fell in love with Captain Hook and is engaged to be married to him, and not because of some curse, it’s because they met as strangers and she fell in love with him.

She can’t deny the fact that she did have feelings for him before all of this. He was always around and when she thought she would never see him again, it did bring her pain. But would that have turned into love? She’s not sure, all she knows is that the moment he suggested for Neal to go with them, all she could think about was how she didn’t want Neal… she wanted him.

Her thoughts are interrupted when Killian walks back into the room with someone behind him. She lifts her head and lets out a gasp, David Nolan... Prince Charming... her _father_ , is there and she can’t help the smile on her face. She never thought she would see him again and he is in front of her.

She remembers those last few moments being in her parent’s arms and how much she regretted pushing them away, keeping them at a distance because her entire life she wanted a family, and when she finally got one, she took them for granted.

She doesn’t plan on ever doing that again.

“Dad?”

David’s face breaks out into a huge smile before he rushes forward and pulls her into his arms. She lets out a soft sob and squeezes him close.

“Emma, thank god,” he whispers as his hand makes it way to the back of her head.

Tears fall from her eyes as they stand there and hold each other before she pulls back. “Where’s—”

“Your mother is fine. She’s back in Storybrooke.”

Her eyes go wide and she looks back and forth between the two men. “Storybrooke?”

Killian clears his throat and motions to the bathroom. “I’ll give you two a minute. I should clean myself up.”

She watches his back until he disappears into the bathroom, her heart aching with every step he takes.

“It’s so good to see you, Emma.”

She blinks back at her father and ushers him back over to the table. David sits at the end and she reaches over to put her hand over his.

“Dad, what happened?”

He shakes his head. “We don’t know. All we remember is saying goodbye to you.”

“Then how do you know a year and a half has passed?”

He smiles down at their hands before he looks back up at her.

“You have a little brother,” her eyes go wide and he nods. “His name is Leo. He’s one.”

“One?! How the hell is that possible??”

“Not sure, but he’s ours… he looks just like you.”

The smile on his face causes her to blush before she asks, “How’s mom?”

“Your mother is great. She’s home with him now. She wanted to come but—”

She shakes her head and cuts him off, “No. I get it. I just… wow.”

Her eyes stare off into space as she tries to take it all in. Not only did she have parents but she has a little brother now, too. He squeezes her hand and she looks up at him.

“I hear congratulations are in order,” he motions down to her ring finger. She lets out a watery chuckle and pulls her hand back to hide it under the table. He shakes his head and leans closer to her. “Don’t tell me you’re worried, too?”

“What do you mean?”

“Hook,” he says in a whisper and it causes her to flinch. “When he got his memories back the first thing he thought about was you... He tried to say your engagement was irrelevant now.”

Her eyes snap up at his words and her just about stops, Killian thinks their engagement is irrelevant? Tears prick her eyes and she has to force herself not to break down. Things are different now, of course he feels different about her, he doesn’t want her anymore.

“Emma… no,” David starts but she just holds up her hand.

“Dad, it doesn’t matter. We should really just concentrate on what’s going on now.”

Sighing, he sits back in his chair. They are silent for a couple seconds before he gives her a little smile.

“We did miss you, both you and Henry, we missed you every day.”

She gives him a soft smile. “You don’t even remember the past year and a half.”

“That doesn’t matter. We know we did, when we woke up back in Storybrooke, we woke up missing you.”

She wants to tell him she missed them, too but she doesn’t want to lie. She didn’t remember them, so she gives him the next best thing. “I missed you before you were gone.”

David pulls her to him and holds her. Biting back a sob, she lets herself feel the warmth that radiates from her father’s arms.

When they pull apart he tells her about how they woke up in Storybrooke and how they had no memories of what happened, how Regina tried to make a memory potion but they were attacked.

“After the attack we were only left with one potion, we made the decision that if anyone could save us, it was you.”

Her brow goes together. “If you only had one memory potion how does—”

“My hook.”

She looks up to see Killian walk out of their bedroom. He’s wearing black jeans, a black waist coat over a navy blue button down shirt and a black leather jacket. The rings on his fingers, once black and more practical, are now replaced with his old, bulky, silver and red ones. He looks less like her Killian and more like the pirate she knew before they moved to New York. Her mouth drops open when he lifts his left arm to show her the silver appendage that replaced his prosthetic

“Touched it and all my memories came back.”

Her eyebrow goes up because she knows he’s lying but she doesn’t call him on it. She watches as he stares at the empty seat next to her before he turns and sits on the opposite side of the table, she tries not to let how much it hurts show.

Taking a deep breath, she puts her head in her hands, “What am I going to do about Henry?”

David shakes his head. “I don’t know, Emma. I’m sorry, I wish I could have gotten more.”

She sits back in her seat. “Do we have any idea who could have done this?”

“Someone powerful enough to reach into this world, I wager,” Killian says before he pours himself another drink.

He’s so carefree about everything, like it’s nothing for him to fall back into his role as a pirate… like the past year and half meant nothing to him.

“Any more specific thoughts?” she asks him in a low growl.

He looks up at her and they stare at each other, both of their faces are blank and for some reason one of the last things he said to her before she drank the potion rings through her ears.

_“I just want to remember this, Emma.”_

_“Remember what?”_

_“The way you’re looking at me.”_

_“And how am I looking at you?”_

_“With love in your eyes.”_

Why would he say that if he thought their engagement was irrelevant?

Killian breaks their gaze first, looks down at his glass and takes drink after he mumbles, “Alas, you’re the Savior, not us.”

After a few moments, David puts his elbows on the table and leans toward her, “Emma, we _will_ find out who’s doing this. We just need—”

“For me to come back.”

David gives her a sad smile and nods. She notices Killian go stiff for a second but his eyes stay glued on his glass of rum.

She runs her hands over her face. “How did you get here?”

“Regina was able to get me a plane ticket…”

She stands and walks into Henry’s room to get his laptop. “Okay. Henry is staying at a friend’s house. We can’t leave tonight, but you should get back to mom. Let me see if I can get you on the red eye to Boston.”

David leans in. “Are you sure, Emma? We can all go back together.”

“Henry doesn’t know you, mate.” They both look over at Killian. “It might be best you go ahead.”

Once again she has to hold back her tears, their son looks to him as a father figure. Just the other night he asked what she thought about him calling Killian dad after they were married.

David nods with a sigh. “My truck is at the airport there. I’ll be able to get back to Storybrooke with no problem.”

Forty-five minutes later, her father has a flight to Boston and Killian offers to drive him to the airport. She can’t help but think he’s trying to get away from her, but doesn’t comment. She’s taking her keys out of her purse when Killian walks up to her. She hands them to him after he replaces his hook with the prosthetic and her eyes go wide as he hands it to her.

Voice low, he asks, “Look after this for me?”

With a slight nod, she wraps her fingers around the cool metal and holds it in her hand. When she looks up she sees him leaning in and a slight gasp leaves her lips. He’s going to kiss her goodbye, something he’s done every day for the past year, but for some reason, this time, it surprises her.

He stops right before their lips touch, pulls back and clears his throat.

“Apologizes,” he mumbles. He stands up and they both look over at her father who is staring at them in interest. “I’ll meet you outside, Dave.”

* * *

* * *

Killian braces himself against the yellow bug and breathes out through his nose. He was going to kiss her, he almost did kiss her, it was out of instinct, something he did on a daily basis, but when Emma went stiff he stopped himself.

She didn’t want him to kiss her.

He squeezes his eyes shut as he tries to fight back his own tears. His heart is breaking because he still loves her, if possible, he loves her even more. Before they left Storybrooke, having Emma love him and actually want him consumed his thoughts the majority of the time. He wanted her to see him for the man that he really was inside but then he told Bae that he would back off, crushing any chance for them to be together.

Then their memories were erased, they met as strangers and fell in love. She loves him… or loved him. He isn’t sure. He leans his forehead against the car as flashes of the past year go through his mind.

All the times she’s smiled at him beautifully, all the times he’s held her in his arms, and all the times they’ve made love.

He chokes back a sob, a year ago and a half ago, the thought of making love to her was a dream he believed would never come true. But now, it’s reality. Less than ten hours ago, he had himself buried so deep inside of her that he didn’t know where he ended and she began.

It’s confusing, having two sets of memories, but in both sets there’s only one thing that he’s sure of. He loves her more than anything, false reality or not, she’s taken over his life in the best way possible and he can’t seem to regret that.

He tries to tell himself that he’s grateful for the time they’ve spent together, like before they left, whatever part he can play in her life is fine with him, but it’s all lies. Now that he’s had her, he knows that he will not be able to survive just standing on the sidelines ever again.

“You okay?”

Killian’s head snaps up and he sees David walking to him with a frown on his face.

He clears his throat and nods. “Aye. Let’s go.”

The two men get into the car and he’s hit with another wave of emotion when he remembers how much things have changed. Before they left, he barely knew what a car was, let alone how to man such a vessel, now, driving came as easy as sailing. He knows the inner workings without thinking about them and can drive like he’s been doing it his entire life.

“You two should talk,” David speaks up.

Killian’s jaw clenches and he keeps his eyes on the road. It’s not that he doesn’t want to talk to Emma, he does, but he’s terrified of the outcome. If she tells him that things are changed it will crush him and he wants to hold onto her for as long as possible.

David sighs. “Hook, believe it or not, I know what you’re going through.”

Killian snorts. “Do you?”

“Yes. I know what it’s like to have two sets of memories and to love the same woman in each of those memories.”

“Mate, with all due respect, I don’t think you do. From what I gathered, when your memories were returned, you and the misses lived happily ever after.”

“But before our memories were returned, it was nothing but heartache and pain. We loved each other, but we both were too stubborn to be together.” Killian eyes him for a quick second before he looks back at the road. “Your story and my story may be flipped, but it’s still the same, and I’m going to tell you something it’s taught me.”

David turns to face him and Killian can see his face fill with determination.

“It doesn’t matter. Just because you have the memories of your real life back, doesn’t make the love you two found in your fake life any less important.”

A dry chuckle escapes Killian’s throat and he shakes his head. “Your daughter didn’t love me in our real life, mate.”

“But she loves you now.”

His hand clenches the steering wheel. “No, with the fake memories she did—”

“Do you love her?”

Killian glares at him. “What the hell kind of question is that?”

“Do you?”

When David continues to stare at him, he lets out a sigh. “Aye.”

“How do you know?”

He licks his lips and says softly, “Because nothing makes sense without her.”

David seems to contemplate his answer for a couple seconds before he continues. “Do you honestly believe that just because she remembers your real past together that means she’s just going to stop loving you?”

Killian stays silent and David lets out another sigh.

“I’m not going to sit here and tell you Emma loved you before, I don’t know if she did. I do know she had feelings for you. Her mother and I could see that clearly, even if she couldn’t, and what makes me believe in that even more is the fact that she loves you now. There is nothing more powerful than love, it can’t be altered or changed, no matter how many curses or fake memories are thrown into someone’s head. When two people are meant to be, they will _always_ find a way to be together. Hook, you two left together, and yes, Regina has admitted she made it easy for you to be in each other’s lives, but you two falling in love, that was all on your own. You could have easily just remained friends, but you were drawn to each other, just like Snow and I were when we were cursed. I believed I was married to Kathryn, but the curse didn’t make me love her, curses can’t do that. You love someone because you _actually_ love that person. You have to believe in your love, Hook, because it’s true and if you try to fight it, you’re only going to hurt each other in the end.”

He’s silent as he lets David’s words sink in, all the years he spent researching magic and spells in hopes to end the crocodile, one thing always rang true. Love is the most powerful thing in the world.

“I don’t know what I’ll do if she says that she doesn’t love me,” Killian admits in a whisper. “I can’t live without her.”

“Then fight for her. Remind her that you still love her, show her, she’s not a mind reader. She won’t know until you two talk to each other.”

After a couple moments of silence, Killian chuckles. “Never thought I’d see the day where you would be telling me to fight for the love of your daughter, mate.”

David laughs with him. “Neither did I. But the second you offered for Neal to go with them, I knew what you felt for her was true. You didn’t care about your own happiness, you just cared about hers. Then I come here and find out you two are engaged? Who am I to stand in the way of the person my daughter clearly loves, even if that person is a pirate.”

Killian waits with him until his flight is called just to make sure nothing happens. They don’t know if there are other people watching them and he wants to be able to tell Emma her father got on his flight safely. David gives him a handshake before he leaves and his body goes stiff at his parting words.

“Talk to her. Be honest, it’ll all be okay in the end.”


	18. Chapter Eighteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I REALLY mean it this time, no more posts until Friday. *gives stern look* I’m putting my foot down. Okay, maybe I also posted because I couldn’t think of any sneak peaks I could give without giving too much away *shrugs*. Now I hope you guys enjoy and just so you are aware, I’m wearing body armor with a protection spell around me so you guys can’t hurt me! ;-p Double Line Breaks mean change of POV

** Chapter Eighteen  **

Emma sits on the closed toilet seat with her heart beating wildly against her chest, the conversation with her father replaying in her mind.

_ “Are you feeling any better? Hook said you were sick earlier.” _

_ “I think it’s a bug. Sometimes I can keep food down, other times it comes back up.” _

_ David shivers with a chuckle. “Sorry. Vomit was never my thing. Part of me is thankful for my missing memories. The entire time your mother had morning sickness with you, I was in the basin right next to her.” _

Morning sickness. 

It’s like it all hit her at once, the throwing up, the crying, the tender breasts…

She’s experienced all these feelings twelve years prior while she was in prison.

Once she snapped out of her shock, she ran down to the store and bought herself a test, now she’s sitting there with her hands in between her bouncing legs. 

It’s all been staring her right in the face and she didn’t see it. Killian and her never spoke of having children, they had Henry and she knows he loves him as if he were his own, but more kids was never discussed. They just got engaged for Christ sakes.

An engagement he seems to feel is irrelevant now…

No.

She can’t be pregnant.

_ Not again… not like this. _

She can’t be pregnant and alone again, she barely survived it the first time. 

Their memories are back and he is already acting strange. If she’s pregnant, he’s going to leave her for sure. 

She looks at her watch, it’s barely been two minutes but she can’t stop herself from looking at the stick that lays on the bathroom counter.

Her heart stops.

She doesn’t have to wait three minutes.

The tiny plus sign is clear as day.

Emma is pregnant with Captain Hook’s baby.

Her entire world stops and suddenly, she feels seventeen years old all over again. Frightened and alone. 

_ He promised he would never leave. _

She reaches up to grip the ring around her neck and closes her eyes.

_ That was before he remembered he was Captain fucking Hook.  _

What kind of pirate captain would want to be stuck on land because he has to take care of a baby?

Panic rushes through her and she has to bite her lip to keep from sobbing. Christ, she’s really going to lose him and it already makes her feel empty inside.

The sound of the apartment door open makes her jump, she didn’t realize how long she had been sitting there staring at the positive test, but it was obviously too long.

She can’t tell him. 

Not yet.

In a panic, she jumps up as she wraps the test in toilet paper and shoves both it and the box into the trash can. She makes sure both are covered and checks herself in the mirror, her skin is pale and her eyes are bloodshot, but it will have to do. When she walks out of the bathroom she sees Killian rounding the corner and clears her throat.

“Everything go okay?”

He gives her a short nod before he puts the keys down onto the table. They both stand there in an awkward silence for what seems like an eternity and it makes her want to scream. She wants to ask him if things are different between them, but she knows they are.

They are no longer Emma Swan and Killian Jones, neighbors turned lovers. 

She is Emma Swan, daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, the Savior, and he is Killian Jones, also known as Captain Hook, villain who spent hundreds of years looking for a way to kill the Dark One.

Tomorrow they will be leaving New York to head back to Storybrooke…

And she is pregnant.

A shiver runs through her as she puts her arms around her waist. He reaches up to scratch the back of his ear and she cracks a small smile. She always found that so cute because she knows he only does it when he’s nervous.

“I don’t know about you, but, uh, I don’t have much of an appetite,” he says as he motions to the untouched food she ordered. 

Her stomach growls and her mouth instantly starts to water. She hasn’t eaten since before her nap, normally it doesn’t bother her, she’s gone days without eating, but now she’s starving. One of the downsides of being pregnant.

_ Pregnant. _

Her stomach drops and she stares at the food like it’s the worst thing in the world.

“Yeah, me either,” she whispers.

He grabs the the food and takes it into the kitchen as she walks up to the table. She spots the hook lying there and can’t seem to take her eyes off of it. Just the sight of it makes her want to cry. She remembers the first time she saw it, how she couldn’t believe that it was real, and how amazed she was at how well he used it. The hook never scared her and a part of her actually misses it on him, but that confuses her. So many feelings are going through her she doesn’t know which one to latch on to. It’s making her question who she even is.

Is she the Emma that met Captain Hook and came to have feelings for him in Neverland?

Or is she the Emma that met Killian Jones and fell in love with him?

Her fingers ghost over the hook and she doesn’t look up until he walks over. Her eyes connect with his and she’s not sure exactly what she sees. His are guarded and his jaw is clenched, all she wants to do is fall into his arms and have him tell her everything is going to be okay, but she doesn’t. She just stands there staring at him. When it finally becomes too much, she looks down at her feet and moves to hand him the hook at the same time he goes to grab it causing their fingers brush against each other.

They both jump back like they’ve been burned.

“Sorry,” she mumbles.

He shakes his head and picks the hook up. She watches as he puts it back in his brace and it makes her feel oddly safe. She wants to talk to him, they need to talk, but when she opens her mouth, nothing comes out. 

“We should get some sleep,” he says. “Tomorrow is going to be a long day.”

She wraps her arms around herself again and she swears she sees him move an inch in her direction before he stops himself. 

“What are we going to tell Henry?”

He lets out a breath and takes a step back as he runs a hand through his hair.  “I don’t know, love. The truth?”

She snorts and sits down at the table. “What? That we are all from a town called Storybrooke where fairytale creatures are real? He’s twelve, he’s going to look at us like we’re insane.”

“What choice do we have?”

She sighs and leans back in her chair. “Maybe we should wait until we get there. There might be something that could help trigger his memories,” he nods and she stares at him. “Like your hook did for you.”

He goes stiff before he averts his eyes. “Aye.”

Her lips press together, he’s still refusing to tell her the truth but she doesn’t push it. They both have their secrets and she can’t exactly be mad at him for keeping something from her while she’s keeping the fact that she’s pregnant from him.

A yawn escapes her before she has a chance to cover it up and his nose twitches.

“Get some sleep, Swan. I’ll finish cleaning everything up.”

She wants to protest, but her brain feels fried and she’s completely exhausted. So she gives him a slight nod before she retreats into the bedroom. When she lays down in her bed… _their_ bed, she finally lets her tears fall. 

She loves her family, and now that she remembers them, she misses them terribly, but she finds herself missing her old life. The life she had just a few hours before. 

She had a job, she had Henry, she had a guy she loved… loves… 

Emma turns her face into the pillow, clenches her fist around his ring, and silently cries harder. She knows she has to tell him that she’s pregnant eventually. It’s not fair to keep it from him, the hurt look on Neal’s face when he found out about Henry was enough to convince her she could never do that again, but she just can’t yet, and it’s not even because of their memories being back, or her not knowing if he still wanted her, it’s because the thought of telling him has her absolutely terrified. 

He’ll leave.

Killian will find out she’s pregnant and that will be the thing that makes him finally leave her. 

She curls herself into a ball and prays for sleep to take over, but she knows it’s a long shot. Since he first started staying over, before he moved in, she’s found it hard to sleep without him by her side. The bed always feels too large... too empty. The nights he would work the late shift at the bar, she would toss and turn until he came home and it wasn’t until he laid down beside her that she would finally rest.

_ “Sleep now, my love,” _ he would whisper into her ear and she would finally doze into a peace sleep.

That was before.

Would he come into their room that night? Or does he think their whole relationship is as irrelevant as their engagement? 

Two hours later, she gets her answer when he comes in trying to be quiet. She knows he knows she’s not sleeping, but neither say a word. She keeps her eyes closed as she listens to him move around the room. There’s the sound of their dresser opening and closing before she hears his clothes rustle and her heart starts to speed up.

She’s had sex with Captain Hook.

Even though she’s pregnant, and is very much aware of where babies come from, it’s not until that moment that she realizes that little fact.

They’ve had sex, more times than she can count. Good sex, amazing, _earth shattering_ sex. They once spent an entire weekend in bed, only moving to get food and to use the bathroom when Henry went to the beach with his friend’s family. Their skin ended up being sticky from sweat and their limbs completely numb, but they couldn’t get enough of each other. 

_ “You’re too far away,” she pants, her body still vibrating with pleasure. _

_ His hand reaches over to grab her own, she can feel it trembling, “I’m right here, love.” _

_ “Too far,” she whispers, shaking her head before she finds the energy to push herself to roll over until she’s on top of him again, making him groan. “Don’t stop touching me.” _

_ “Never,” he vows before he kisses her into oblivion. _

The bed dips and she feels him lay down. Normally, he would turn on his side, wrap his arm around her waist, and pull her back flush against his chest, but not this time. He just lays still next to her and lets out a sigh. 

The air is thick with words unspoken between them and even though they are close, she feels like they are miles apart. 

They lay there all night, neither one of them sleeping, both aware, both refusing to say anything. There are plenty of times during the night she opens her mouth to say everything that’s on her mind.

_ Please tell me this doesn’t change anything. _

_ I love you. _

_ I don’t want to lose you… lose us. _

_ I’m pregnant. _

_ Please don’t leave me. _

But she stays quiet as she fingers the ring around her neck. She has a town to save and the last thing she should be worrying about is her love life.

When the first rays of sun peek in through the windows, she gives up on trying to sleep and sits up. Killian sighs from behind her but doesn’t move. They stay like that for a long while, her sitting on the edge of the bed with her back to him while he just lays there. 

Once the room is fully bathed in sunlight, she finally speaks. “We should pack.”

“Aye.”

They move around the apartment in awkward silence. Every time they bump into each other, it’s weird and one of them mumbles an apology before they fumble to go back to whatever task they were doing. Eventually, they have all their items packed in bags by the door. 

“Is that everything?”

Emma nods. “So we should get to Henry’s school right before it even starts. We’ll grab him before he goes in and head out.”

He gives her a nod and they both stand there in silence for a couple seconds. 

_ I’m pregnant. _

She finds herself saying that in her mind every time neither one of them speak. It makes her feel a little bit better, but not by much because she’s not actually telling him, she’s only thinking it.

“I’ll take the bags down to the car.”

“Okay, just give me a second and I’ll lend you a hand.” He arches his eyebrow up at her and she gives him a forced smile. “I just need one last thing.”

She walks back to their bedroom and opens up the closet. She pushes the coats aside until her eyes land on what she’s searching for. Grabbing the leather jacket, she instantly throws it over her shoulders, she can’t remember wearing it at all in the past year and half, but she never did get rid of it. Her hands reach up to pull her hair out from under the jacket and she smiles, because for the first time since she got her memories back, she feels safe… strong, and it’s because she has her armor on.

* * *

They are both standing outside of Henry’s school leaning against her bug. Parents are walking their children inside and her eyes catch a mother saying goodbye to a little girl with a stroller beside her. In just a few short months that’s going to be her and it scares her to death. She’s never been a mother, despite all the memories, they are fake. She’s never changed a diaper, she’s never fed a baby a bottle, she’s never done any of it.

She didn’t meet Henry until he was ten years old and by then he already knew how to do everything a parent teaches their child to do as they grow. 

“There he is.”

She looks up when Killian speaks to see Henry walking toward the school with his friend. Her heart breaks a little because the world he knows is about to be flipped upside down. 

“Lad!”

Henry looks up and a bright smile appears on his face. They watch as he says something to his friend before he jogs over to them.

“Mom… D-Killian, what are you guys doing here?” They exchange a look before Henry chuckles. “I told you I would come to school. You didn’t have to check up on me.”

She smiles and shakes her head. “That’s not it. How about we go on a trip?”

Henry’s eyebrows go up. “Like a vacation?” 

She takes a deep breath and crosses her arms over her chest. “Like, I have a new case, and it’s in Maine, and it might take me awhile, and I think we should go. It would be an adventure.”

Henry looks back and forth between them. “All of us?”

“Aye,” Killian tells him. “All of us.”

“No school? A family trip? Sold.”

Her smile is small and filled with sorrow at his use of the word family, but it’s there. “Good, because we already packed.”

As she turns back to the car, Henry asks, “When do we leave?”

She opens the back door to her bug and motions with her hand. “Now.”

Henry’s eyes light up before he takes his book bag off and jumps into the back seat. Once the door is shut, both Killian and Emma drop their fake smiles. With their faces once again blank, they climb into her bug and head off to Storybrooke.

* * *

* * *

Henry announces he’s going to watch a movie on his phone and Killian lets out a sigh of relief. The lad has been so excited since the moment they got into the car he’s talked nonstop. Normally, he doesn’t mind, Henry’s ramblings are always welcomed because he finds what he has to say interesting, but not this time. Because all Henry ever talks about now is their wedding.

When he first spoke about it in the car, he and Emma both went tense. He looked over at her but she seemed intent on avoiding his gaze, so he kept quiet and let him speak.

“Can we stop at the next rest stop?” Henry asks twenty minutes later. “I have to use the bathroom and I’m a little hungry.”

Emma leans forward and nods. “Sure thing, kid. I think there’s a rest stop at the next exit.”

When they stop, Henry barrels out of the car while Killian and Emma take their time.

“We should talk,” he mumbles to her as he watches Henry run to the bathroom.

She sighs as she brushes her hand through her hair. There’s a flicker of something that crosses her face before she masks it with a blank stare. He knows that stare, it’s the same stare she would give him when her walls would go up in the past, and he would always kiss it away.

But now he can't. 

He wanted to talk to her so bad the night before when he came back from the airport, but she brought up Henry and he knew that was more important. 

They had a son to worry about. 

So he just kept quiet and let her walk away. He spent hours in the living room arguing with himself about going into her bedroom… _their_ bedroom to go to sleep. He’s spent the past year sleeping next to her and he knew he wouldn’t be able to if she wasn’t there. Though he was terrified she would kick him out, he made the decision to try. To his complete and utter surprise, she didn’t protest to him lying down next to her and it made hope grow inside of him. But then she didn’t speak, he knew she was awake, but she kept completely silent. There were multiple times during the night he opened his mouth to say something, but nothing ever came out. His arms ached to hold her, but he stayed still. When she sat up in the morning, he stared at her back with his arm raised reaching for her. The ends of her hair brushed against his finger tips and when he finally found the courage to actually say something, it was stomped down by her hollow voice telling him they needed to pack and once again his fears snapped back into place.

“About?”

He rubs the back of his head and motions to where Henry ran off to.

“What are we going to do about our…” he stops himself and shakes his head. “Your boy. It’s not going to be long before he realizes there’s something going on here.”

“Something going on?”

He lets out a huff, she’s being stubbornly obtuse and it’s frustrating him.

“I don’t know about you, Swan, but hearing him prattle on and on about our future is driving me insane when…” He trails off.

What he wants to say is when he doesn’t know if that future still exists because he’s not sure how she feels. He wants to ask her if she still loves him, if there is a hope for them to be together now that they’ve remembered, but he can’t, getting to Storybrooke is what matters most.

Her jaw clenches and she looks away from him.

“Obviously we can’t tell him the truth.”

“And that is?” he asks in a whisper.

He’s giving her an opportunity to explain how she feels about what is happening, and when she finally speaks, his heart breaks.

“That the engagement is _irrelevant_ now, right?”

Her voice sounds so cold and it rips his insides apart. All the fears he’s had since he’s gotten his memories back are right and all he wants to do is break down, but he keeps his face blank and looks down at his boots.

“Right,” he agrees even though every cell in his body is screaming that it isn’t.

“So we’ll just have to go on like things are normal, are you okay with that?”

It’s like she’s trying to kill him slowly. In once sentence, she’s crushed any hopes he had of their future together and now she wants him to pretend that they are still the same happy couple they were not twenty-four hours prior.

“Aye. Are you?”

She looks back at him and he swears he sees her eyes glisten before she brushes past him.

“Yup.”

* * *

Later that night, Killian carries a sleeping Henry up to their room at Granny’s while Emma leaves to go get her parents and Regina. They’ve decided to stay there instead of the loft because Henry doesn’t know them and it would be hard to explain why they would stay with them.

He lays the boy down on the couch bed in the common area and takes his sneakers off. He tucks him under the covers before he brushes the hair away from his forehead. Henry still feels like a son to him, real memories back haven’t changed that, and the last thing he wants to do is hurt him. 

He pulls his hook from his bag and clicks it into place before he walks out into the hall to see Emma and Regina walking up the steps. The former Queen looks just as he remembered, but her face, instead of being filled with pain and anguish, is filled with hope and longing.

“Regina,” he says with a slight nod. 

Her eyes move from the closed door to him and her lips press together as she swipes a piece of hair from in front of her face. 

“Hook. It’s… it’s good to see you.”

He chuckles at her obvious lie but doesn’t comment.

“Is Henry still sleeping?” Emma asks.

He nods. “Aye, I just put him down. He didn’t wake at all.”

Regina sucks in a breath and Emma turns to her with a soft smile. 

“At least you’ll be able to see him,” she whispers to the woman who now has tears in her eyes. 

Emma rubs her hand on Regina’s arm as he walks down the hall passed them. He can feel her eyes on his back but he just can’t look at her because if he does, he’s afraid he’ll break.

“Killian!”

He looks up to see Snow White and her husband standing before him. The petite woman rushes over and his eyes go wide when she pulls him in for a hug. 

“It’s so good to see you!” she gasps as she pulls back.

Unlike Regina, Snow is genuine when she speaks and it warms him. David gives him a nod before he looks down. There on the couch, is a little lad, sleeping soundly clutching a teddy bear to his chest. 

“I see there is cause for celebration, milady,” he says with a whisper.

Snow smiles at him before she walks back over to the couch where her littlest is sleeping. 

“Thank you, this is Leo, Emma’s little brother.”

He looks down at the babe and his lips twitch. Though he’s sleeping, Killian notices right away the similarities David spoke of between the little Prince and Emma. Where Emma is fair, he is dark, like his mother, but his nose and cheeks are just like his sisters. Before he even realizes what he’s doing, he lifts his hand and runs a finger over the child’s face. His skin is so soft and it causes a deep yearning inside of him.

In the past year, he’s dreamed many times of having more children with Emma, dreams that now are nothing but. 

The sound of footsteps breaks him out of his haunting thoughts and Snow moves back. 

“Okay,” he hears Emma sigh from behind him and he moves across the room. He wants nothing more than to take a seat next to her, but he can’t, so he busies himself with looking out the window to make sure they aren’t being watched.

“Regina is upstairs keeping an ear out while Henry sleeps. If he wakes up, you all are helping me with the case. So, what the hell happened here? I mean, besides the obvious.”

He turns his head enough to see her motion to the sleeping babe from her spot on the couch with a small smile on her face. 

Snow sighs and shrugs. “We don’t know. We watched the three of you drive over the town line, Regina started to cast her spell to take us all back to the Enchanted Forest and then… everything went black.”

“And the next thing we remember is waking up in our beds like it was any other morning in Storybrooke,” David explains with a step closer to his wife.

“Except it clearly wasn’t,” Snow says with a little chuckle.

“Yes, a year and a half has gone by. We were in New York…”

Killian clenches his jaw and looks back out the window. _They_ were in New York, happy, together, in love…

“And we don’t know where the hell we were, either we left or something happened because there are new people…”

David stops talking when the entrance to the Inn opens. They all look over and Killian rolls his eyes when he sees two dwarves walk in. 

“We lost another one… we’re five now,” Grumpy growls.

“Four,” the other one, Killian’s not sure which one he is, says while he looks at his phone. “Bashful’s not answering.”

“Wait,” Emma looks between the dwarves and her parents. “What’s going on?”

“Thank God you’re back, sister.”

He notices her flinch at the dwarfs words and it makes his brow go together. 

“It’s not just our memories that are missing,” Snow speaks up. “Ever since we woke up, people have begun disappearing.”

“Whoever cursed us is picking us off, one by one.” Grumpy cries out.

Killian takes a step forward as he and Emma exchange a look.

“Who’s missing?” He asks.

David sighs. “Aside from the dwarves, we’re not sure. There’s been a lot of confusion over the past few days. It’s been hard to keep track of everyone.”

He watches as Emma lets out a puff of air and sits back on the couch. They are all silent for a couple seconds before she licks her lips and looks up at her parents.

“Neal,” Killian goes stiff. “Is he here?”

His jaw clenches and averts his eyes. He knows it’s selfish, she has her memories back and that means the feelings she had for Bae have returned, but he feels betrayed. How is it that it’s so easy for her to just forget everything that has happened between the two of them and fall back to Bae?

“Well, we haven’t found him yet…” Snow tells her. 

“So, he might have been taken, too.” Her voice is soft and his muscles twitch.

When he glances at her, he sees there is a faraway look on her face and even though he feels betrayed, he can’t help but comfort her.

“He’ll turn up, Swan,” he mumbles. “He always does.”

Killian moves to look back out the window when David catches his eye. The Prince arches an eyebrow at him but he ignores him and looks away. The lot of them continue their conversation while he just stands there, all he can think about is Emma and how even though she’s in the same room as him, it feels like she’s nowhere around. It’s been twenty-four hours since he last held her in his arms and he’s felt empty since. Like there is a piece of him that is missing. 

“Maybe Regina can try to make more memory potions…”

David shakes his head. “The last time she tried to make them we were all attacked. We barely got out with one for you…”

Emma sighs and stands up. “We have to do something. We have to get your memories back.”

“How are we going to do that?” Snow asks.

“By figuring out who took them in the first place. I just need to talk to everyone…”

Killian turns back to the group and takes a step to her. “You plan on walking around using your superpower on everyone, Swan? That might take some time.”

Emma sends a glare his way and he tries to remember the times when she used to look at him with love.

“You’ve got a better idea?”

They continue to stare at each other for a few moments while his jaw clicks. Part of him wants to fall back into their old banter from before they left, her attitude followed by his cunning wit, but he just can’t seem to do it. Too much has happened.

“I think the best thing we can do tonight is rest,” David says as he puts his hand on his wife’s shoulder. “We’re not going to figure this out right now, so we should all get some sleep and tomorrow we will start fresh.”

Killian looks down at his boots while David ushers the dwarves out of the Inn. He stays silent as Snow stands while her and Emma start a soft conversation. 

“I’m assuming you haven’t talked,” David whispers when he walks up to stand next to him. 

Killian lets out a huff and rests his right hand on his belt. “We talked… some… I don’t know. She’s made it clear, we are to pretend for the lad’s sake that everything is still normal.”

David’s brow goes together and he crosses his arms over his chest. “She said that?”

“Called the engagement irrelevant.” 

The Prince raises his eyebrow and a small smirk forms on his face. 

Killian shakes his head and turns to glare at him. “Happy to amuse, _mate_.”

“Talk to her, Hook.”

Before he can say anything else, David walks back over to his wife and puts his arm around her waist as he tells her they should head home.

“Yes, you’re right… I just have one question.” Killian looks up at Snow as she points to Emma. “Is that an engagement ring?”

His eyes snap down to Emma’s hand. It’s then he realizes she’s is still wearing the ring he gave her. She’s been wearing gloves since they left New York and he didn’t see it, but there it is, still sitting on her finger where he put it.

Emma quickly yanks her hand away to hide it behind her back and he can see her breathing start to pick up. His eyes stay glued onto her face but she refuses to look at him. He wants to believe the reason she’s still wearing his ring is because she wants to, because she still loves him, but then he remembers her words. 

_ “So we’ll just have to go on like things are normal.” _

He bites back a sigh and takes a step back before he retreats up the stairs, because if he has to hear Emma tell them it’s nothing, he might just scream.

* * *

* * *

Emma lets out a stuttering breath as Killian stomps up the stairs. When she knows he’s no longer in ear shot, she breaks down. Tears fall from her eyes and her chest hurts as she tries not to make her sobs too loud. Her hand goes up to the necklace around her neck, it feels like a lifeline for her, a lifeline to the Killian that gave it to her so many months before. She’s only mildly aware that there are hands touching her before she’s being placed back down on the couch. Her mother pulls her into her arms and Emma holds onto her tight as she cries. 

“Shh, it’s okay, baby,” Snow whispers in her ear. 

She can feel David rub her back as she tries to calm herself down, but it only makes her cry harder. Her hormones are so out of whack that she’s finding it hard to keep the wall up she’s perfected over the years. 

“What happened?” Regina cries out as she rushes into the room.

“Emma, do you want me to go get Hook?” David asks.

Her body goes stiff and she starts to shake her head frantically. 

“Okay, okay,” Snow says as she pulls her closer. “Charming, go make sure he doesn’t come down here.” There’s a bit of silence before she starts again. “Just stay at the top of the steps! If you hear him coming, give us a warning.”

She hears her father sigh before he kisses the back of her head and walks out of the room. Her tears continue to flow as she Snow and Regina start to mumble to each other. 

“She needs to calm down, now!”

“Regina!”

“If she doesn’t calm down she’s going to blow out the lights in the whole place and that will definitely bring Hook back down here.”

Emma snaps her eyes open and looks around. The lights are flickering while a gush of wind blows around the room making the curtains whip in the air. She immediately pulls herself from her mother’s arms and starts to panic. The lights shine bright and one of the bulbs in a lamp bursts.

“Emma, look at me!”

She looks over at Regina who is kneeling in front of the couch her little brother is sleeping on, shielding him from the wind.

“Take a deep breath and calm down. The more upset you get, the more your power is going to expand.”

Emma closes her eyes as the wind gushes across her face and takes a deep breath. She tries to calm herself down but she feels trapped… abandoned… 

_ He left. _

_ He walked away from her. _

Another light bulb shatters and she flinches.

“Sweetheart, you need to calm down,” Snow urges.

“I’m trying!” Emma insists.

Regina growls. “It’s not that hard! Just concentrate!”

“I am!”

_ Killian left her. _

The wind blows harder.

“Calm down!” Regina hisses.

“She’s trying!” Snow cries.

“Not hard enough, she’s never had a problem before!”

“I wasn’t pregnant before!” Emma hollers.

The fire crackles loudly before it goes out completely and the entire Inn goes black. The room is silent and she can feel two sets of eyes staring at her in shock. They finally snap out of it when they hear footsteps coming down the main stairs.

“Does he know?” Snow asks in a frantic whisper.

Emma quickly shakes her head before Regina lifts her hand and waves it over her face. She can feel her cheeks immediately dry and the puffiness of her eyes disappear just as David and Killian round the corner.

“Is everyone alright?” David asks.

Emma shoots up. “Is Henry okay?”

“He’s fine. Lad slept through it all, what the bloody hell was that? Was there an attack?”

She stares at him blankly, thankful that he can’t see her fully in the dark as she tries to come up with a good excuse. Before she can say anything, Regina stands and brushes her hands over the front of her skirt.

“It was me. Seeing Henry upstairs after so long, I’m just a bit emotional. Sorry.” Regina explains as she turns and walks to an empty seat. With a flick of her wrist, the lights come back on and she sits calmly in her chair.

Emma closes her eyes in relief and sits back down on the couch.  

“Fair warning next time would be nice, lass.” Killian huffs out before he walks back up the steps.

She forces herself not to have another attack as her mother stands and walks over to David.

“Charming, I’m going to stay here for a little while. Catch up with our daughter, why don’t you and Leo head back to the loft? Regina can give me a lift home.”

Regina nods. “Of course.”

David looks over the women before he nods. Snow follows him out to the car and Regina and Emma sit in silence. She’s glad for it, she didn’t plan on telling anyone about the pregnancy, she hasn’t even seen a doctor, but there she goes blurting it out after a little freak out because her hormones are off the charts. 

Snow comes walking back into the room and sits down next to Emma.

“Do you think you’ll be able to talk without…” Snow motions her hand around the room and Emma rolls her eyes.

“I think I can control myself now.”

“Good,” her mother says with a smile. “Do you want to talk about what’s happened or…”

“I think that’s unnecessary, the pirate knocked her up!”

“Regina!” Snow gasps out. 

The Mayor rolls her eyes and stands. She walks over to the couch and sits on the other side of Emma.

“Well it’s true. Whose else would it be? One of the dwarves?”

Emma lips twitch into a smile while Snow takes her hand in hers.

“And the ring?”

She sniffles and looks down at the engagement ring. 

“He asked me to marry him a week ago,” she answers in a whisper. 

“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” Regina mumbles. 

Emma’s brow goes together before her face turns hard and she glares at Regina. “This is your fault!”

“Mine?!” 

“You put the memories in our head! You made us this way! It’s not right to mess with people’s--”

Regina’s jaw locks and she puts her hand up.

“Let me make one thing perfectly clear, Miss Swan. You knew what I had to do because the curse was coming. But I did not make you and Hook any way. I made sure he was close, that you three would have no choice of meeting, but that is it. Whatever happened between you and Captain Guyliner happened all on its own.”.

“Emma,” Snow starts. “Why don’t you start from the beginning?”

She takes a deep breath and starts. She tells them how her and Henry met Killian a month after they moved to New York and how their relationship grew from that point on. She tells them about her little freak out a couple months in after Henry fractured his ankle, Regina doesn’t like that but tries her best to seem indifferent, then how Henry locked them on a roof until they spoke to each other. Emma tells them how their relationship continued to grow and how things felt so easy with him and how safe she felt when he was around.

“Last week was our one-year anniversary. He proposed and I accepted. I’ve been sick the past couple days and it wasn’t until after Killian took Dad to the airport that I realized what it could be. I ran down to the store and bought a test and well…”

“It was positive,” Snow finishes for her.

Emma nods and the three of them all sit in silence. It feels a weight has been lifted off her shoulders now that she’s told someone that she’s pregnant.

“I haven’t been to a doctor yet…”

“We’ll go see Whale tomorrow,” Snow insists. “We’ve been taking your brother to him since we woke up… he’ll be able to tell us how far along you are and whatever else you need to know.”

Emma reaches up to wipe a lone tear that falls from her eye.

“Are you going to tell him?” Regina asks softly.

She sighs and sits back on the couch. She knows that she has to tell him, eventually he’s going to wonder why her stomach is starting to grow, but she’s not sure she’s ready. Killian obviously doesn’t still feel the same way about her anymore and she doesn’t want to spring the news on him about her pregnancy when she’s trying to accept that. Also, she hates the fact she’s still terrified he’s going to leave once he does find out. They may not be together, but having him near is better than not having him around at all. 

“I will, just… things are complicated right now.”

Regina scoffs. “Why? You two are engaged. I’ll admit it’s not the best timing, but I’m assuming he’s not going to mind.”

A new round of tears forms in her eyes and she has to squeeze them shut to keep them at bay. All she wants to do is go upstairs, lay down and fall into Killian’s arms, but she can’t. So she takes a deep breath and finishes telling Regina and Snow about what happened between the two of them since they got their memories back. When she’s done, she’s even more tired than she was before and silent tears fall down her face again.

“Well that’s just ridiculous!” Snow gasps and Regina waves her off. “It is! We all saw him before you two left, he was a love sick puppy. Just because you have your memories back doesn’t change that.”

“Actually, I agree with Regina,” her mother says.

Emma looks at her in shock before she turns to Regina.

“I know, I heard it, too.”

Snow rolls her eyes and sits up. “Emma, everyone knows how Hook felt about you before you all left. It was his reasoning for leaving with you. I don’t think his feelings are the ones you have to worry about. He’s probably just following your lead.”

“She’s right,” Regina starts. “You were the one that wasn’t in love before. If anything, he’s the one that’s thinking you don’t feel the same way. Talk to him.”

Emma shakes her head. “I can’t… what if…”

“Have hope, Emma,” Regina rolls her eyes at her mother’s words. “Love isn’t easy, it’s hard, and it’s painful, and it’s every day. But It needs to be fought _for_ not fought against. You two have been through too much to let it go without having a full conversation.”

Her mother’s words echo through her mind when she finally enters the room they’ve booked at Granny’s. It’s dark and she can hear the faint sounds of her sons snores from the couch bed before she makes her way to their bedroom. The room is silent, but she knows Killian is still awake. Even if she could find the courage to talk to him about their relationship, she knows now isn’t the time. It’s going to be a long conversation and they both need rest since they haven’t slept since before they got their memories back. 

She walks over to her bag and is slightly surprised to see it’s empty. A sad smile comes to her face when she realizes Killian must have unpacked for her.

Perhaps what Regina told her is true. 

Grabbing her pajamas from the top drawer, she moves to the bathroom, ignoring the twinge of pain that hits her because she doesn’t feel comfortable changing in front of him, which is ridiculous because they’ve seen each other naked more times than she can count, they’ve literally kissed and licked every inch of each other’s skin...

A shiver runs through her as she remembers the feel of his touch and the feel of him inside of her. She’s never been with anyone like Killian before. He is always so aware and so willing to give when it comes to love making and it always seems to make her see stars. 

She shakes her head to get rid of those thoughts before she’s even more frustrated than she already is. Emotional frustration topped with sexual frustration cannot end well. While brushing her teeth, she gets hit with another round of morning sickness. She tries to fight it, but still ends up with her head in the toilet purging whatever was left in her stomach. 

“Really don’t understand why they call it _morning_ sickness,” she mumbles to herself before she flushes the toilet and goes back to brushing her teeth. 

It’s not until she’s laid herself down in the bed next to him that Killian finally speaks.

“Are you going to go see a doctor?” his voice is low and soft.

She sighs and runs her hand down her face. Damn him and his freakishly good hearing.

_ I’m pregnant. _

“I’m going with Mary Margaret tomorrow when she takes Leo for his checkup.”

He’s silent for a couple seconds before she feels him move. When she looks over, sorrow rushes through her when she sees he’s turned on his side with his back facing her.

“Good.”

She bites her lip and turns on her side to try and keep her tears at bay. Her fingers fumble with the ring as she closes her eyes and remembers the words he spoke when he gave it to her.

_ “Whenever you are having doubts, I want you to look at this ring and know that it is my symbol for you… A symbol to show you that I won’t leave, because I love you.” _

She eventually falls asleep only to be awoken a couple hours later to voices.

“What’s the matter, lad?”

“I had a bad dream, some crazy kid kept playing music and asking me to dance. I can’t fall back asleep.”

Emma’s eyes snap open and she looks around the room, it’s still dark and her mind is still foggy from sleep. When she looks up she sees their son standing over her next to the bed.

“Henry?”

“Can I sleep with you guys?”

She blinks a couple times before she looks back at Killian.

“Aye, come on.”

Henry starts to climb in and it forces her to move to the middle. She swallows her gasp when she feels Killian’s body behind hers. It’s the closest they’ve been since New York and it instantly wakes her up. Henry lays down next to her and snuggles into her chest as she wraps her arms around him while she kisses the top of his head and tries to ignore the stiff body close to her other side. 

The next morning, she awakes to Killian’s arm around her waist, his body flush with her back and his head in her hair while Henry sleeps soundly next to them. She smiles and snuggles into his chest more until she hears a door shut from out in the hall. Her eyes snap open and she remembers, they aren’t in New York, they are in Storybrooke and everything is different.

Later, when she takes a shower, she sits in the tub with her legs pulled up to her chest and she cries harder than she ever remembers crying in her entire life.


	19. Chapter Nineteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I've been hella busy this week and I was going to answer to reviews, but I thought you guys might just appreciate a new post instead and a promise to answer all reviews to this chapter in a timely fashion! :D PS if you're not following me on Tumblr, you probably should, we all have a pretty good time over there :)

** Chapter Nineteen **

Killian picks up his hook and sticks it in the inside pocket of his jacket before he makes his way down to the diner where Emma and Henry are waiting. When she suggested they meet up with the Charming’s and Regina for breakfast to introduce them to Henry, he just shrugged.

“As you wish,” he answered her.

She stared at him for a couple seconds before she continued to get ready. He wants to hold her, he wants to tell her that he still loves her, that just because they have their memories back doesn’t change anything, but she’s so cold and closed off to him, it’s like no matter what he says won’t make a difference.

But he’ll put on a brave face, he’ll keep moving forward, because it’s the right thing to do. He can’t worry about his feelings while the town is under attack.

He walks into the diner to see the group seated at a table in the front with the little babe in a chair on the end. There’s an empty seat in between Henry and Emma and it’s strange but familiar to him. Before they left, he would have just sat in the back of the diner and watched from afar at their happy family breakfast, wishing he could have joined them, now, he knows they are waiting for him and even though the circumstances aren’t ideal at the moment, it brings a sense of happiness to him.

Walking up to the table, a genuine smile comes to his face when Henry brightens at the sight of him.

“There you are! We were wondering what was taking you so long.”

“Sorry, lad. Lost track of time.”

“It’s okay. Mom got you an omelet. This is Mary Margaret, her husband, David, and their son, Leo. Mary Margaret was mom’s cell mate in Phoenix!” Killian’s eyes go wide and he has to bite his lip to keep from laughing. “And this is Regina, she’s the Mayor here! Regina, this is my stepdad, Killian.”

Regina blinks before her eyes snap up to him. He gives her a tight lipped smile and she shakes her head.

“Uh, yes, of course. Killian, it’s nice to see you again.”

“You guys all know each other?” Henry asks in confusion.

Killian reaches up to scratch his ear. “Aye. I spent some time in Storybrooke before moving to New York. Met everyone then.”

“Huh,” Henry starts with an amazed expression. “What a small world.”

Emma sighs before she stands to let him into the seat next to her. He can feel Henry’s eyes on them and he already knows what the lad is waiting for. He holds back his curse and takes a step forward.

“Morning, love,” he mumbles before his lips brush against her temple.

Killian hears her breath catch as he moves to sit down in the empty seat. She mumbles back a reply and sits down next to him. He ignores the sad looks from her parents and busies himself with pouring a cup of coffee.

“Mom got a milkshake for breakfast,” Henry whispers to him.

His eyebrow goes up and he looks over a her. Her cheeks tint but her lips press together.

“You know,” Snow cuts in. “Sometimes it’s nice to have dessert for breakfast. It makes the whole day seem better.”

Snow looks to Regina who speaks up next.

“That’s true. It could change the day.”

He watches as the three women exchange a look and he knows they are hiding something. Killian looks to David who just shrugs while Henry bounces in his seat.

“Does that mean I can have chocolate milk in my cereal?”

Killian chuckles along with Snow and David while Regina and Emma gasp.

“Afraid not, lad. Best if you stick with your pancakes.”

Henry’s shoulders sag but he doesn’t argue. Their food arrives a short time later and Killian keeps quiet while everyone around him talks. He doesn’t really have much to say and isn’t in the mood for fake pleasantries. He just focuses on helping Henry with his breakfast, something that comes natural to him since he’s done it every day for the past year, and he barely notices the three adults watching him as he does it.

“That’s enough syrup, Henry,” he whispers when he tries to drown his breakfast.

Regina asks Henry about his schooling and he gets so excited he knocks his fork on the ground. Killian immediately gives him his own as a replacement and when the waitress walks up, Emma asks for another while she lifts his cup to be refilled. He’s picking the fork up from the ground and telling Henry not to talk with his mouth open when he sees Emma putting a new cup of coffee in front of him.

It almost feels like it did back in New York, the three of them having breakfast together, always aware of each other’s needs, he almost forgets that they are in Storybrooke. It’s out of habit they work like this, so in sync with one another, and he yearns for more of it. Emma even picks off his plate like she always does and when he’s finished, he offers her the rest of his bacon before he leans back and rests his left arm on the back of her chair.

Killian feels Henry tap him on the shoulder and he leans down so he can whisper in his ear.

“Where’s the bathroom?”

He points it out to him while Emma stands. Instead of getting up himself, he picks Henry up from underneath his arms and lifts him over his lap before placing him down on the ground.

“You’re good with him,” Regina mumbles as the boy runs off.

Emma goes stiff as she sits down and Killian just takes a sip of his coffee.

“Is that a bad thing?” David asks.

Regina sighs. “I just never thought I would see the day where Captain Hook is taking care of my son while I have to sit back and watch.”

Killian lets out a huff and sits back. “He’s been my son for the last year, Regina.”

Her face goes hard.

“I made it so you were close, Captain. But I never made it so he was _your_ son.”

He clenches his jaw and cracks his neck. He understands where Regina is coming from, he can’t even begin to imagine what it’s like to watch your child be close with another adult he considers a parent while he has no memory of you. But no matter what happens, he’s never going to stop looking at Henry as his son.

“I get that this is hard for you, Regina, I’m sorry for that, really I am. But right now, as far as Henry knows, Hook is his step father, and you’re just Madam Mayor, that’s it.”

He looks over at Emma and gives her a small smile of gratitude.

“I’m well aware of how Henry sees me, Miss Swan.”

David clears his throat and sits forward. “For what it’s worth Regina, I think you are very strong for doing this.”

She lets out a dry chuckle.

“Yeah, why is that?”

“I couldn’t,” he explains. “When Hook got his memories back, I asked him to go himself to give Emma the potion. I couldn’t bear having my daughter look at me like I was a stranger.”

Killian looks up and David gives him an appreciative nod while Snow takes her husband’s hand in her own. Emma gives him a small smile and Regina presses her lips together.

There’s silence for a couple seconds before Henry comes running back to the table.

“Can I go up to our room and get my Gameboy?”

Emma looks over at his plate while Killian goes into his pocket and takes out the keys.

“Aye. But you have to finish your breakfast before you start playing.”

Henry promises that he will before he takes the keys and runs off. He sees Regina sit back in her seat, her face masked in a blank stare, but her eyes filled with sorrow.

“Were you able to make anything of the vial we gave you?”

She shakes her head. “I must have missed an ingredient.”

“Can you try again?” Snow asks as she feeds Leo some dry cereal.

“I’ve already used up what was left of the potion we gave to Emma. There’s nothing left to applicate,” she leans forward and puts her head in her hands. “I can’t live in this town if Henry doesn’t remember me. It’s worse than any curse I ever could have cast.”

“Well then, let’s find the person who cursed the town,” David explains.

Regina snaps up and throws a glare at him.

“Haven’t you been paying attention? I can’t make any more potion!”

Emma sits up. “No, wait. He’s right. I have a better idea. You don’t have to make anything, and we can still catch the person.”

“How?”

“Well,” she starts. “Killian was right last night. I’m not going to figure out who’s behind this curse by talking to people one by one.”

“What are you going to do?” Killian asks her.

“I’m going to talk to everybody.”

Before anyone can respond, Henry comes running back up. But instead of waiting for his mother, he climbs over the booth behind them and sits in his seat. David and Killian both chuckle while Emma and Regina sigh.

“So what are we doing today?”

They all look at each other when Henry speaks before Emma pushes her empty milk shake glass away.

“Actually, Regina here has offered to give you a tour of the town. How does that sound?”

Regina sits up in surprise as Henry’s brow goes together before he turns to Killian.

“What are you going to be doing?”

“Uh, Dave and I are going to meet up with some old friends see if they know anything that could help with your mother’s case while she finally goes to the doctor.”

“I just thought you might like to be shown around,” Regina says with a small smile. “Maybe we can stop for ice cream when we’re finished.”

Henry’s eyes light up before he express just how much he likes that idea. They finish up their breakfast and stand. Emma is saying goodbye to her father when Henry walks up to him and gives him a hug.

“Have fun, lad. Be good for Regina, aye?”

Henry nods and gives him a smile.

“Can we go down to the docks later if it’s not too late? I want to see some of the boats down there.”

“If it’s not too late.”

Killian rubs his back as he gives him a small smile and kisses the crown of his head. When he looks up he sees Regina staring at them in sorrow. He can tell the Queen wants nothing more than to be able to do the same with the boy, but she can’t.

“I have to get going or we’re going to be late. We’ll all meet back at Mary Margaret and David’s loft later?” Emma says as she walks up to him.

“Aye. We’ll let you know if anything turns up.”

Emma gives a nod before she leans in. His breath catches and she’s only inches away from him when her eyes go wide and she stops. She was about to kiss him goodbye but stopped. Killian’s eyes move to Henry who is staring at them with a smile. He looks back at Emma and makes the decision for her.

He takes a determined step forward and plants his lips on hers. Words can’t describe how it feels to kiss her again, his insides melt with happiness and it takes everything in him to pull away.

“I’ll see you later, love.”

A smile forms on his face when he sees her lips twitch before she nods.

He’s still walking on air as he and the Prince head out of the diner. She was going to kiss him and it wasn’t for their son’s benefit, it was because she wanted too.

“Did you take my advice?” David asks as they climb into his truck.

Shaking his head, his happy thoughts immediately go away at the cold reality that slaps him in the face by the simple question. “You know, mate, you’re worse than a town crier trying to get information.”

David chuckles and shakes his head.

“Or I’m just worried about my daughter’s future.”

Killian sighs and puts his hook in place.

“We haven’t had a chance. Been a little busy…”

“And you’re worried?”

He chuckles dryly. “Of course I’m bloody worried. Not all of us are as optimistic as you and your wife.”

David shrugs as they turn on the back road. “You just have to believe in your love.”

Killian opens his mouth to respond but stops when they he looks up to see a group of men crowded in the middle of the road.

“Bloody hell.”

He and David dart from the truck as the words finish leaving his lips.

“What happened?”

Someone Killian doesn’t know, calls out, “Little John! He was taken, right here!”

The man points to the town line as he moves and Killian takes a step forward.

“I wouldn’t step over that line, mate.”

He looks back at Killian with a glare as David takes a step up, “Robin this is Hook, Hook, meet Robin Hood.”

The two men give each other a nod before Robin points back to the town line.

“You think Little John was carried away because he attempted to cross that line?”

David looks at him before he turns back to Robin.

“Makes sense. The dwarves were out checking the line to see if anyone was coming or going when they disappeared. What exactly took Little John?”

Robin rubs his through his hair and shakes his head. “We didn’t get a good look. Some manner of a beast with wings.”

Killian and David both go stiff.

“What?” Robin takes a step toward them. “Have you heard of this monster?”

“Sounds like the monster that attacked us in New York,” David mumbles.

“Attacked?”

Killian lets out a sigh. “He changed into what you’re describing, we had to kill him before we got a chance to question him.”

Robin looks like he’s getting more worried with each passing second. “We need to find Little John!”

David nods. “Let’s all do a search, see if we can find any trace of your missing guy.”

* * *

* * *

Emma sits in her car staring out into the night.

She’s pregnant.

There’s no doubt about it. Whale told her given her symptoms, she’s probably four or five weeks along. He offered to do a sonogram so she could be certain, but she declined. It just didn’t feel… right without Killian.

She hasn’t had much time to think about it since right after her and Regina decided to fake the town out, but now as she sits in her car and waits, she has all the time in the world.

Emma is pregnant with Killian’s baby.

She tries to tell herself that it’s going to be okay, but she just can’t. They aren’t even together anymore, are they? Her fingers reach for the lifeline around her neck, he hasn’t asked for it back, and that makes her feel somewhat better, but it could all be an act. He thinks their engagement is irrelevant and has agreed to pretend. She hates herself for coming up with the idea of pretending, she was just so desperate to keep a part of him for as long as possible that she didn’t know what else to do.

Her hand goes to her stomach. Now she’ll always have a part of him, even after he leaves. Which he no doubt will, they are back in Storybrooke, from what Snow told her earlier his ship is back as well, so is his crew, it’s only a matter of time before he’ll want to get back on the sea. He is a pirate and the Jolly has been his home a lot longer than a year and a half. She knows that matters more than a home with her.

Tears prick her eyes and the interior light in her bug starts to flicker and she forces herself to calm down. She doesn’t know much about her magic, but she has to learn to control it, especially now that her emotions are all over the place.

She wonders how she’s going to tell everyone. She knows that the only people that matter are her family but this is a small town, all it took was a little sentence earlier to Leroy and he told the whole town exactly what her and Regina wanted him to tell them. Once they get wind of her pregnancy it’ll spread like wildfire. Snow had to threaten Whale with the fear of Regina for him to keep his mouth shut.

Thank god he takes the doctor/patient confidentiality thing seriously.

Her thoughts are interrupted when the door to her bug opens and Regina sits down.

“Sorry, I wanted to make sure I wasn’t being followed.”

Emma gives her a small smile before she turns back to office to keep watch.

After a few moments of silence, she finally says, “Regina, I wanted to ask you something.”

“Yes?”

“The memory spell you put on us… you say that you didn’t do anything with me and Hook to make us--”

“No. I wiped your memories clean of each other.”

Emma shakes her head and her brow goes together.

“It’s just… some of the things we did, or, said to each other… we said them before. I mean, we didn’t know then, but now that I’m thinking about it, there are things that played out the same way. Why would that happen?”

Regina shrugs. “History has a way of repeating itself. From what you’re saying it sounds like you two were just going down the road you were always meant to go down.”

She blinks at Regina’s answer before she turns back to the office to keep watch. They stay silent for a few moments before Regina sighs.

“Are you going to tell me what happened at the doctors?”

She looks down at her hot cocoa. She wishes it was coffee but now she has to be careful about what she drinks.

“What’s to tell? I’m pregnant. Whale says about four or five weeks.”

Regina nods. “When are you going to tell him?”

Emma stays silent and sips her drink. She knows that she has to tell him, but when she will she has no idea.

“Emma.”

She sighs and runs her hand through her hair. “I don’t know. Right now we have more important things to worry about and we need his help.”

Regina turns in the seat and looks at her. “Do you think he’s going to leave when you tell him?”

When Emma stays silent, Regina’s eyes go wide.

“You know who you’re talking about, right? Tall man, dark hair, love for leather and guyliner? The same man that refused to leave your side almost since the moment you two met.” She rolls her eyes but stays silent. “He _gave up_ his life, his memories, to follow you to New York, and now you think because you’re pregnant he’s going to decide ‘well, it’s been fun.’?”

Emma locks her jaw and throws a glare her way. “Don’t judge me, Regina. I’ve been through this before.”

“No. You’ve been through this with Neal before, not Hook. Not every man is going to leave you.”

“He didn’t just leave. He set me up to take the fall for his crime and left me in jail.”

“Then he came back, too.”

She looks at her like she’s crazy. “Only because I was forced to go get him by Gold when I didn’t know it was him. He made it very clear he wasn’t going to come looking for me even though he knew the curse had been broken. If I had never gone, he would have never known about Henry.”

“Well there’s your answer right there. Hook has never left you, you left him. Multiple times and he always came back. I think the question isn’t whether he’s going to leave or not, it doesn’t have anything to do with him, it all has to do with you and what _you_ want.”

Emma looks at her with her brow together.

“Do you want him, Emma?”

Before she can answer, there's movement from inside Regina’s office, “We got them.”

* * *

Emma closes the door to their room and leans her forehead against it. Whoever put the curse on the town got through her and Regina’s trap and they still are no closer to finding out who it is.

After their trap was a bust, Emma told Regina she would meet her at her parent’s loft, she wanted to go back to the Inn to hide the paperwork Whale gave her after her appointment before Henry or Killian saw it in her car.

She lets out a sigh and hangs her coat on the back of a chair before she takes the paperwork into their bedroom and lifts the mattress. They are mostly doctor talk, she hardly understands what any of it says, but there is one sentence on there that’s clear to anyone that will read it.

Positive for pregnancy.

The mattress drops back down just as she hears the door open. Her eyes go wide and she scrambles to stand before she rushes out of the bedroom to see Killian walk in.

“Oh,” he stops when he sees her. “I didn’t know you would be here.”

Her eyes move back to the room before she looks at him and shakes her head.

“Yeah, I, uh, I just wanted to put my phone on charge.”

He eyes her for a second and she can tell he knows she’s lying, but he doesn’t call her on it. He just nods and scratches the back of his head.

“Right. Well, I was just going to clean myself up before your father comes back to get me.” It’s then she sees the dirt and mud on his clothes. They stay quiet for a couple moments before he takes a step forward. “How did it go at the doctors?”

_Oh, just fine, he just confirmed what I already knew..._

She looks away and presses her lips together as she walks past him to the kitchen area. She takes her phone out of her coat pocket to busy herself and avoids his gaze.

“Fine.”

When he doesn’t respond she finally chances a look up at him. He’s staring at her so intently, it starts to make her nervous.

“Did he say what was wrong?”

_I’m pregnant._

She looks back down at her phone and shrugs. “It’s just a bug. It’ll go away on its own.”

“Swan you’ve been sick for almost a week. I think it’s a little more than a bug.”

_I’m pregnant._

Letting out a sigh, she places her phone back on the table, “Well, I don’t know what you want to me to tell you.”

She’s about to go for her jacket when he reaches out to grab her arm. She stares at his hand before her eyes slowly make their way up to his face.

“What aren’t you telling me, Emma?”

_I’m pregnant._

Her breath hitches for a quick second before she forces herself to show indifference, pulling her arm back, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

His jaw ticks. “So we’re lying to each other now?”

Her muscles twitch but she stays locked into place. She could tell him now, she _should_ tell him now, but they have to get back to her parent’s loft and she’s just not ready yet.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she repeats.

He huffs and runs his hand through his hair. “If there is something wrong with you, I deserve to know.”

“Why?”

She watches as his mouth falls about and he hesitates before he says, “You might be pushing my away, Swan, but what we had in your world wasn’t a lie.”

The tone of his voice kills her but she keeps her face masked, even if all she wants to do is fall into his arms. He’s standing right in front of her but he might as well be in a different state. She misses him, misses _them_ , he always knew how to make her feel better, but he can’t anymore.

Tears prick her eyes and she averts them in hopes that he won’t see.

“What did you think was going to happen, Hook? That we could just come back here and everything would be the same? I’m the Savior and you’re a pirate! New York doesn’t change that, it’s not that easy.”

His jaw clenches and she can tell she’s made him angry. If she pushes him hard enough, he’ll let the anger wash over him and he’ll never have to know how much not being with him kills her. But that’s good, because anger is always better than hurt.

At least she hopes…

“Aye,” he hisses through gritted teeth. “Just a _pirate_. That you cared for. That you wanted to spend your life with.”

Her face stays blank while her insides crumble. She _hates_ this, hates all of it. Can’t he see that she’s lying? She doesn’t think of him as a pirate, she hasn’t in a long while. She loves him, he’s everything to her, but if he knows that now, he’s sure to break her.

“A life that wasn’t real,” she doesn’t even recognize her own voice and she absolutely loathes herself.

“Wasn’t… re…” he stutters as he blinks slowly. “Wasn’t real? That’s what this is about?”

Her brows pinch together. What _else_ would it be about? Since the _second_ she’s got her memories back, he’s been doing nothing but giving her signals that it wasn’t real, so why is he questioning it?

Before she can answer, he steps forward, anger radiating off of his entire body.

“You truly believe what I felt for you wasn’t _real_?” His eyes move back and forth. “Swan, how I felt, how I still feel for you, is the most real thing I know.”

Her heart starts hammering in her chest at his closeness and no matter how much she tries to deny it, her body is reacting to him.

She doesn’t want to have this conversation now, she can’t handle him rejecting her once she tells him the truth, but she knows him… _knew_ him. He would never back down, never let her walk out. So she goes for the one thing that she knows he won’t reject.

Inhaling deeply, she takes her own step forward, invading his space, the tips of her boots brushing against his own.

“How you _feel_ about me? Don’t mistake love for lust, Hook.” Her eyes move to his down to his lips before her voice drops. “What we _had_ , was flickering remnants of tension from a life we didn’t remember.”

His lips draw into a thin line as she speaks. Honestly, she has no idea why she’s doing this. She set out to make him angry and now all she can think about is kissing him.

She hasn’t kissed him in so long, those brief moments earlier in the day when he kissed her goodbye in front of their son not counting. It wasn’t enough, it would never be enough.

“Just lust,” he growls, leaning forward to stop an inch from her lips and letting his breath fall hot on them, “that’s all you felt every time I praised your body, worshipped every part of your flesh?” He shifts his mouth to her ear, his voice lowering to a whisper. “Well, you’re _wrong_.”

A stuttering breath escapes her and her eyes close at the feel of his lips on the shell of her ear. Flashes of all their times together playing in her mind, making her choke out a whimper when his warm breath hits her skin.

Her nipples go hard and her core heats up. He’s trying to seduce her into telling him the truth, something he’s done plenty of times back in New York.

One feel of his lips and she would spill all her dirty secrets to him.

Determined to get the upper hand of the situation, she moves her face closer to his again.

_Mad, he needs to be mad, I can’t handle anything else, it’s too much._

“Get a grip,” she hisses, the tip of her nose ghosting across his. “Like your gods gift.”

His eyes blaze with anger as he fixes his gaze on her. The last time she saw him _this_ angry was when she left him on that beanstalk, chained and abandoned.

_Just like he’ll do to you once he finds out you're pregnant._

His lips curl into a sneer. “You forget yourself, love,” he pushes his chin forward, just brushing her lips with his while he continues. “I still remember every moan and whimper I drew from your beautiful mouth. I still remember you crying out my name, _begging_ me for more.”

His hook rises to her waist, his hips shifting forward to meet hers making her stumble back, but the table keeps her from moving very far. He lowers his head to brush his mouth against her jaw and her entire body starts to shake with want as his voice sends jolts down her body.

“ _Harder, Killian_ ,” he mimics in a vague facsimile of her voice. “ _Come inside me, oh_ God, _please._ ” He lets his stubble scratch her cheek as he smiles. “Don’t you recall, my darling?”

Of _course_ she remembers, each time is burned into her memory, she couldn’t forget if she tried.

But he’s not that person anymore, he’s a pirate, he’s always _been_ a pirate. New York, their engagement, her pregnancy… nothing will change that. No matter how much she wants it to.

Swallowing, her eyes move back and forth between his own before she stands up fully, her bottom lip brushing against his own, “You’re so full of yourself, aren’t you? The way I remember it is _you_ begging _me._ ”

She lifts her shaking hand to walk her fingers up his chest, her eyes moving down to the sliver of his chest that’s peeking out.

“ _More, Emma_ ,” she groans in a deep voice. “ _Bloody hell, you’re squeezing me_ so _tight.”_

Looking back up at him, her face hardens and she spits out, “What kind of _pirate_ does that?”

_That’s right, Emma, keep reminding yourself it’s what he is, maybe it’ll hurt less…_

Her heart hammers in her chest as he asks, “What more do you want from me, Swan?”

What more does she want? She wants _him_ and the life they promised to have together. She wants to tell him about the baby and not have him leave…

Opening her mouth, she’s a second from spilling everything out to him because of the sound of his voice…

_Everything._

But she can’t, he’ll break her the second he knows the truth, she’s sure of it.

She searches his eyes from some kind of sign that things aren’t different, but she knows it’s a useless effort. Needing to feel something other than the ache in her chest, she does the only thing she can think of.

Pushing herself the last inch forward, her lips fuse to his while her hands grip at his waist. The kiss is angry and harsh because that’s what she deserves, it’s what she _craves._

He hesitates for a second, and another wave of fear washes over her.

_He’s going to reject me._

But then he kisses her back and it’s almost as if he wants it just as much as she does, like he misses her as much as she misses him.

So she pours all her feelings into the kiss and everything she wants to say to him.

_I love you._

_I miss you._

_I want you._

_I’m pregnant._

_Please don’t leave._

She pulls back to take a breath and he murmurs against her skin, “Why are y-“ but she presses her mouth back to him before he can finish. Whatever he wants to say, she can’t hear it, because she knows no matter what it is, she’ll believe him, she’s too weak not too. She’ll believe him and then he’ll leave. There’s no doubt in her mind, once he finds out she’s pregnant, he’s going to leave.

It’s the story of her life.

He’s not the Killian that lived in New York anymore, she isn’t enough to keep him. He’s Captain Hook, and the Jolly Roger is his home.

His lips relax as he slips his tongue against hers in a fight for dominance making her whimper softly. She’s overwhelmed with such _feelings_ that it makes her pause, it’s all too much, too soft. When he pulls back, he looks down at her with his brow pinched together, but before he can open his mouth to attempt to speak again, her hands make their way up his chest, gripping the open part of his shirt and ripping it open, along with his waistcoat.

Buttons fly across the room while her fingers scratch down his chest, the fine hair tickling her, as she grips the charms on his necklace and pulls, forcing him to take another step closer.

His hips bump into her and she feels the all too familiar bulge press against her.

With her hands shaking, she fumbles with his belt buckle, making it known exactly what she wants.

“Swan,” he growls in a warning tone, lightly touching her hips with his hand and hook and pushing his nose into her neck. “Tell me what you need,” he says against her skin with a sigh. “Say it.”

Her chin starts to quiver and she squeezes her eyes shut to keep her tears at bay.

_I need you, I need you to stay with me, I need you to not leave, I need you to still love me._

But she knows it’s different and she’ll just end up alone in the end.

She always ends up alone.

Taking a deep breath, she pulls back. He may not be able to give her what she really needs, but it doesn’t mean he can’t give her something else, something that will make the constant feeling of dread and fear wash away even if it’s just for a little while.

Pressing her lips together, she forces her face to turn to stone again as she unbuckles his belt.

“I want you to _fuck_ me, Hook.”

A low hiss escapes the back of his throat as she tugs at his clothes, purposely pulling the fabric of his pants against his hardness. His grip on her hips lightens and he pushes her back against the table to dislodge her hands from his waistband.

“Then you will _behave_ , love,” he growls, lip curling into a snarl as he pins her back.

Her hands land on the table behind her, his hook and hand around her wrists while she pants. She’s never seen that look in his eyes before, or his voice drip with such dominance.

They’ve had rough sex, she’s actually a _big_ fan of the way he speaks during sex, it’s not something that’s new, but _this_ \- before it was roughness usually brought on by too much rum and teasing- this is different.

The person in front of her isn’t Killian and fuck if doesn’t instantly make her wet, because right now she can’t handle more memories of their past. She needs _hard_ , she needs _fast_.

She doesn’t want Killian… she wants Hook.

With her chest heaving, her lips tug into a disobedient grin before she pushes her face to his and breathes into his mouth, “ _Make_ me.”

He lets out a sexy growl before he puts his hand and hook on her waist. Her breath catches when he twists her around and forces her to bend over the table.

She cries out in pleasure when he bites the curve of her neck as he yanks her jeans down her legs.

“You want the pirate, Emma, I’ll give you the pirate.”

The cold metal of his hook on her skin makes her shiver before sound of ripping echoes throughout the room. Wetness leaks out of her as she realizes he’s used his hook to tear her panties away and when he finally pushes himself into her, she screams out.

“That’s it, love. Let me hear you.”.

His hips rock into her from behind and her nails dig into the table. He licks and nips at the back of her neck while his right hand tightens on her hip. Their moans are loud and the table scrapes against the floor, but she doesn’t care, he’s taking her just the way she wants and it’s making her see heaven.

“So wet, so tight,” he grunts. “Is this what you wanted, Emma?”

“Yes!” she cries out.

Her head slams back against his shoulder and her eyes watch as his hook scratches into the wood. The edge of the table digs into the front of her thighs and she’s standing on her toes, but the pleasure he’s giving her makes it unnoticeable.

She pushes herself up more and he groans at the new angle. His hand leaves her hip to move her hair over her shoulder before he reaches into her bra cup and palms her breast.

“God, Killian, harder!”

He grunts and slams into her harder than he ever has before and she comes undone. Her eyes squeeze shut as her cries fill the room while he sucks on her neck, neither one of them paying any attention to the bulb that shatters across the room. She feels dizzy and lightheaded, it’s one of the best orgasms she’s ever had and she can do nothing but reach up to grip his wrist and pant loudly.

His lips move up to her ear and she shivers when she feels him lick her lobe before he whispers, “I’m not even close to being done.”

Her eyes pop open when he wraps his hooked arm around her and pulls out. He reaches up with his hand and forces her to turn her head until he devours her mouth with his own while he moves them to their bedroom, she moans when he bites her bottom lip. Before she can even catch her breath, he’s flipping her over, pushing her down onto the bed and plunging back into her.

“Fuck!” she hollers out.

“Such foul language for a _princess_ ,” he groans into her ear.

Their skin slaps together and her back arches up off of the bed. Her body is still feeling the aftershocks of her first orgasm and her face feels numb as her nails rake down his chest, but it only makes him growl and pump even harder.

“This is getting you off isn’t it, Emma?” he pants into her ear. “Getting fucked by a _pirate_?” She moans and her thighs tighten around his waist. “Your quim has never been so wet, gods, you’re burning me alive.”

His words are making her dizzy and she can feel herself climbing close to the edge again. He suddenly lifts up and throws her leg over his shoulder. She tries to reach out to him but he snags her wrists in his hook and pins them up above her head while her eyes slam shut and she moans loudly.

“You’re going to come for me again, aren’t you? That’s a good girl.”

Her hands move slightly until she can wrap her fingers around his hook while he pushes himself even deeper into her. Her thigh is pressed against her chest and he leans down to lick her lips.

“My name. I want to hear it,” he demands.

She whimpers and lets out an ‘oompf’ when he thrusts back into her. He’s torturing her and he knows it, bringing her right to the edge but stopping before she can fall over. He grinds his hips against hers quickly before he pulls out and slams back in.

“Say it.”

Her left hand stays wrapped around his hook while her right one wiggles free and shoots out to grab the back of his head. He groans as she pulls him down and forces his lips onto hers.

“Oh my… _Hook_!”

A snarled growl escapes him as his hips move at lightning speed and she screams out her second orgasm. Her entire body shakes, or maybe it’s the bed, she’s not sure, and her mind goes blank. He gives one final pump before he groans out his own release and collapses on top of her.

Their skin is covered in a layer of sweat and she can feel her thighs shaking. He’s still twitching inside of her while his face is buried in her neck. She doesn’t know how long they stay like that before he finally pushes himself up. Her fingers unwrap from around his hook and they actually cramp from how hard she was holding it. They both hiss when he pulls out and flops down onto the bed next to her.

They lay there, chests heaving, staring at the ceiling in silence and she has to bite her lip to keep from sobbing. The weight of what they just did slams down on her like a tidal wave, because no matter how much she wants it too, it doesn’t change a thing, it only makes it worse.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *covers ears* Okay okay, stop shouting! I have an announcement! *clears throat* Now, I know you all want the big MAKE up, but, it wasn’t here, sorry. *ducks from flying objects and holds hands up* Listen! It’s not like last time at least. They won’t be apart, that’s a little better right? Anyway, onto the announcement. Next Friday, the BF and I have to go somewhere so I won’t be able to post *sees a flying computer* HEY! That almost hit my head! *fixes hair* Will it help if I tell you I’ll try to post on Sunday?? Still love me? <3


	20. Chapter Twenty

**Chapter Twenty**

Killian sighs as he steps out of the truck. He can still smell Emma on his skin and feel her around him, but it doesn’t matter, David showed up before they got a chance to talk and she scurried out of there right after.

When he first walked into the room and saw her, he thought they might actually be able to talk. But then she was pushing him, intentionally making him angry, when all he wanted to do was talk to her, so he knew it had to be done the hard way.

It wasn’t the first time he tried to seduce the truth out of her.

In New York, whenever her walls would try to fight their way back up, he would kiss every inch of her skin, reminding her how much he loved her until she would open and tell him the truth.

But she was prepared.

What kind of pirate begs, she taunted.

_The kind that gave up everything for her? The kind that’s heart still flutters at her smile? The kind that fancies her even when she_ is _yelling at him? The kind that loses everyone he loves. The kind that pretends he doesn’t care he’s rejected. The kind that gets pushed away._

He almost stopped her when she kissed him. Everything inside cried for him to break the kiss, to not let himself be used for whatever game she was playing, but he couldn’t bring himself to move. It felt like an age since her lips last touched his and her warmth was before him, her mouth was eager, urging him on. His loins started to stir before he could decide otherwise. He missed her so much.

He tried to convey his feelings without actually saying them, letting her know that he’d do anything for her, she need only ask, and she did, she let him know _exactly_ what she wanted from him.

_Is that all I’m good for, easing the ache?_ He almost asked her aloud, but he bit his tongue and gave what she asked for.

She wanted Hook, she got Hook.

It was raw and passionate and with every thrust, every harsh pant, he once again tried to show her how much he loved her. When they were finished, he planned on doing just that, but David showed up and she darted to the bathroom before he could even finish pulling up his trousers.

When he and David walk into the loft, they see Regina standing outside of the opened bathroom door. She looks at them before turning back and mumbling something. A moment later, Snow walks out followed by Emma who looks pale and he instantly takes a step forward.

“What’s wrong?”

The three women exchange a look before she shakes her head and ignores his question. “What happened in the woods?”

David looks over to where Henry is sleeping and Emma’s gaze follows. With a sigh she motions to the hall and they all move out.

Killian waits until the others exit before he stops her. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing.”

She tries to walk out, but he stops her again. “Are you going to tell me what’s wrong with you?”

Her jaw locks before she yanks her arm away. “It’s a bug. I’m fine. Now can we please get back to the matter at hand?”

When she storms past him, he lets her. He knows in that second the short time they’ve spent apart was enough for her to retreat back into herself and ignore what happened.

_Just an ease for the ache._

He waits a couple seconds and lets his anger calm down before he follows her out. Besides her acting as if they didn’t just pillage each other’s brains out, she’s keeping something from him. He knows it and he knows she knows he knows. But she’s still refusing to tell him.

“They are being turned into flying monkey’s?!” Snow gasps as he walks out into the hall.

“Aye, he took a simian form with a pair of wings.”

He listens as they all talk and he notices how Emma makes it a point to not look at him. It only fuels his anger and when she asks about Bae, he’s about ready to break. The rational part of his brain tells him it’s normal, Bae is the _actual_ father of her child, even if it pains him to admit, and he’s still not sure what her feelings for her first love were before they left, but the other part of him can’t help but feel like she’s slapping him in the face. They are… were together, the sweat from their coupling is still sticky on his skin and she’s ignoring him while asking about her ex.

David shakes his head. “No sign of him, either. So, yeah, it’s possible.”

“The person who escaped our trap disappeared in a cloud of green smoke. And now, there are flying monkeys in town? I think we know exactly who cursed us.” Regina answers.

Emma snorts. “The Wicked Witch of the West?” When everyone stays silent her eyes go wide and she looks at them in shock. “Seriously? She’s real, too?”

Killian rolls his eyes, “Says the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming!”

She throws him a glare and he just shakes his head. His answer may have come off a little snappy but he can’t help it. It’s taking everything in him to keep his calm when all he wants to do is scream. They continue to stand in the hall for a little longer while they try to figure out why the Wicked Witch would have a problem with them when they hear the clock tower go off in the distance.

“It’s getting late,” Emma starts with a sigh. “We should get Henry back to the Inn. We’ll meet up in the morning to see if we can figure anything else out.”

They all agree before they walk back into the living room, and he watches as she looks over at Henry before turning to him. “Would you mind…”

Without letting her finish, he moves over to the couch where their son lay sleeping. He takes the Gameboy and puts it in his back pocket before he picks the sleeping lad up into his arms.

Henry’s eyes blink open for a second. “Killian?”

“Aye. I got you, lad.”

He mumbles something before he rests his head on Killian’s shoulder and falls back asleep. When he turns, he sees Regina staring with a locked jaw and sad eyes.

With a sigh, he walks over to her. “Would you like to say goodbye?”

Regina stares at him for a couple of seconds before she takes a step forward and brushes a piece of hair away from Henry’s face. Tears shine in her eyes as she leans in and presses a feather light kiss against his cheek before she moves back and turns away.

They drive in silence and when they make it back to the Inn, Emma holds the doors open for him while he carries Henry up to their room. They work together to dress the lad in his pajamas, before she moves to the bedroom. Following her at a slow place, he enters to see her standing by the dresser with her back to him. They need to talk about what happened earlier and he refuses to let her just ignore it.

“Swan.”

Her back goes stiff for a quick second before she reaches up to take out her earrings, not saying a word. Taking a step closer to her, he tries again.

“About earlier…” She places her earrings on the dresser and ignores him again, so he takes a step back with a huff. “We need to talk about this, Emma.”

“We can’t leave, Henry.”

“That’s what doors are for, love.”

She shakes her head. “He could wake up.”

“Then we go downstairs. It wouldn’t be the first time we left him sleeping alone in a room so that we could talk.”

When she turns to look at him, he sees her lips set in a firm line.

“There wasn’t a...” she whispers the second part. “Wicked Witch out there looking to attack the whole town then!”

“We need to talk!” he growls.

Her fist clenches at her side and she glares at him. “There’s nothing to talk about!”

Balking at her words, he steps closer, “There is plenty to talk about. What happened earlier—”

“Doesn’t matter!” she hisses and he stops.

He breathes through his nose. He can’t take this. He can’t take her looking at him with hate and anger, not after everything they’ve been through. He can feel tears starting to well up in his eyes and a sob in the back of his throat as he takes a step back.

He wants nothing more than to run out of the room and go drown himself in a barrel of rum, but he finds himself stuck. He’s promised to never leave her and he feels that even if he announces he’s just going down to the pub, she won’t believe him, and it’ll just be one more thing he has to fight against.

Running his hand over his face, he lets out defeated sigh. “You win, Swan.”

She looks at him in confusion before he brushes past her over to the bed and picks up his pillow. With a heavy heart, he leaves their bedroom and goes out to the common area. Throwing the pillow down on the second couch, he reaches for the flask in the back of his jeans and takes a large gulp before he lays down.

He doesn’t sleep at all that night.

* * *

Time passes in Storybrooke like it did before they left, they spend their days searching for the Wicked Witch coming up with no leads, and every night for two weeks, Killian stays on the couch.

David tries to talk to him, but he he’s not in the mood to talk to anyone. The only person he wants to talk to doesn’t want to talk to him, she even avoids looking at him unless she absolutely has to. He berates himself for the small sliver of hope that she still wants him, she still wears his brother’s ring around her neck and his engagement ring on her finger, he stares at them all the time, but whenever she catches him looking at her hand, she always hides it behind her. He wants to believe she’s wearing them because she still loves him, not because of Henry, but nothing changes.

His eyes move to the window when he sees the first rays of sunshine. He’s spent another sleepless night on the couch and the ache in his chest continues to grow. It kills him to be so close to her every day physically, but so far apart mentally.

Running his hand over his face, he decides to get up because he needs to try and clear his mind, he won’t be good to anyone so conflicted. He’s moving to the bedroom before he realizes it and forces himself not to look at the bed when he goes into the draw to get the clothes he hasn’t worn since New York.

The sneakers feel foreign on his feet and the draw string pants feel too loose, but he knows they are better to run in than his boots and jeans. When he walks back out into the common area, he leans down to give Henry a soft kiss on the top of his head before he heads to the door.

He’s just about to turn the knob when he hears her voice, “Where are you going?”

From the corner of his eye, he can see Emma standing in the doorway of the bedroom. Her hair is tussled in the way he’s always loved and there’s a quilt draped over her shoulders

“For a run down at the docks. I’ll be back before breakfast.”

He doesn’t wait for her response and leaves. It’s windy out and he can feel the dampness from the sea on his face. It brings a calmness to him that he hasn’t felt in a while and he longs for the days where things were easy, but then he remembers how dark those days were until Emma came into his life. She’s been a light in the years of darkness and he knows now more than ever that he can never go back.

She’s forever changed him.

Flashes of happy times in their year together go through his mind and he pushes himself to run faster.

_“Emma,” she rolls her eyes with a smile when he raises his eyebrows. “Swan. Emma Swan.”_

He pushes even harder.

_“Well, I hope you have a nice night at work.”_

His feet pound against the wood.

_“I’m serious, Emma. I would like to get to know you better.”_

_“I’d like that, too.”_

His lungs start to burn.

_“Sure that’s the only thing you’ll have a weather eye on?”_

His chest starts to hurt.

_“I wanted to. Why did you dare me?”_

His muscles start to scream at him.

_“Because I’m in love with you!”_

He comes to a stop in front of a barn and his chest heaves up and down.

_“Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”_

He runs his hand through his hair and leans back against the barn.

_“I love you.”_

Sliding to the ground, he reaches into his pocket. He has to bite back a sob as he unfolds the picture and stares at it. It’s a picture Henry took of him and Emma when they went to the park last spring as the sun set, she looks so beautiful it hurts. They use to have the photo on their nightstand back in New York but he took it the morning they left. He rubs his thumb over her face before he pulls out his phone and dials his voicemail. With his eyes trained on the photo, her voice fills his ears.

_“Hey handsome. I’m just wondering where you are. I rested all day, as requested, so you should be happy, but now I’m hungry. I’m having the biggest craving for Hawaiian pizza… among other things only you can deliver, so hurry home! I love you.”_

He’s lost count on how many times he’s listened to the voicemail or stared at the picture. Whenever he feels like he can’t go on, or when he feels that the past year with her has been a dream, he uses them both to remind him.

And for those brief seconds, he’s happy.

* * *

“Are you and mom fighting?”

Killian’s head snaps up and he looks at the boy sitting across from him. After his run, he went back to the Inn to find both Emma and Henry awake waiting for him to go get breakfast. She tried to mask her surprise when he walked through the door, but he saw it right through her.

_Open book._

He clears his throat and takes a sip of his coffee. “What makes you say that?”

Henry rolls his eyes.

“I’m twelve, not an idiot. You guys have been acting weird around each other ever since we got here. Plus, you’ve been sleeping on the couch. Is it because she took this case?”

Letting out a sigh, he puts his cup down. He’s made it a point to move from the couch before the lad woke each morning so he wouldn’t see, but it obviously didn’t work. Henry has always been more perceptive than anyone gives him credit for and they should have known he was going to pick up on how different they were acting. Emma and Killian always smiled, were always touching or connected in some way, now they barely look at each other and sit with a gap in between them. She told him that they should pretend in front of Henry and all they’ve been doing is making sure he sees them together, because every time they are near each other, she goes tense like she did before they crossed that town line.

“We had a disagreement, but everything will be alright.” He mumbles, trying to hide the doubt in his voice.

He knows then, that they are going to have to up their game, but he can’t seem to mind. Every second of every day, all he wants to do is hold her in his arms, but he hasn’t been able to. Now, he can.

Emma called him a pirate the last time they had any sort of real conversation, and that’s what he’s going to be. He’s going to get exactly what he wants, time with her in his arms, by doing what pirates do best…

By stealing it.

Henry nods and looks back at his menu. A couple minutes later, Emma comes back to the booth and sits down next to him. He has to bite his lip to hold back his laughter at her shocked expression when he puts his arm around her and pulls her close.

“Cats out of the bag, love,” Her brow goes together and her eyes move to Henry before she looks back at him. “Our boy here has pointed out he’s noticed something’s been wrong with us. So I say that means you’re no longer allowed to be cross with me, because Henry will just help me make it all better.”

Her mouth pops open right before he reaches over to poke at her side like he’s done so many times before. His heart flutters when he sees a genuine smile appear on her face and a small giggle escape her lips.

“He’s right,” Henry says with a laugh. “We’re on a trip! We should be happy not sad!”

His lips twitch and he turns back to look at her. He feels like he’s floating on air by having her so close for the first time in a long while and he tries to remember how he went without it. She lets out a sigh and he can feel her sag into his arms, though she isn’t completely relaxed, most of the tension is gone and it thrills him.

Softly, she murmurs, “Okay.”

Henry smiles bright and crosses his arms over the table. “Now both of you say sorry to each other and let’s have breakfast.”

They both go tense again but know they won’t be able to get away without saying it. Before, whenever they argued, Henry always made them apologize when they wouldn’t do it themselves, one time he refused to leave their bedroom until the words were spoken. Killian looks at Emma and his eyes move back and forth between her own as her eyelids flutter and he thinks he might see a hint of tears.

With his left arm, he pulls her closer and puts his hand over hers, his thumb rubbing the ring still on her finger.

Using only two words, he tries to rely everything that he’s feeling, “I’m sorry.”

She sucks in a breath and her chin moves slightly while her fingers intertwine with his own and he gives her a small reassuring smile.

“I’m sorry, too.”

They stare at each other for a couple of seconds and it’s almost like she’s looking at him like she did before she got her memories back… with love and devotion. He lifts his head and presses his lips to her temple as her hand tightens around his. He smiles because for the first time in a long while, he feels hope flow through him.

* * *

They walk to the Charming’s loft hand in hand and Killian can’t wipe the smile from his face. The three of them are strolling down the street together and it feels normal. They laugh at Henry’s excitement over the town and listen to his stories about the places that Regina took him to the day before.

“You see that clock tower? There’s a library inside of it! Did you know that?”

“Aye. I’ve been there before, lad.”

Henry turns to them and starts to walk backwards with a smile.

“It’s a weird town, but cool. And how awesome is it that you guys were in the same place and met the same people but not each other? It’s almost like it was meant to be or something.”

He feels Emma go stiff next to him and he lifts her hand to his lips and kisses the back of it. “That’s because it was, my boy.”

Her cheeks tint while Henry giggles and turns back around to walk. When they get to her parent’s loft, he smiles when he sees how excited their son is to see Regina standing outside. He knows how much it hurts her for him not to remember who she is, but it seems that there is something inside of him that misses her.

“Hello, Madam Mayor! I didn’t know you would be here again today.”

Regina’s smile falters a little when he greets her but she covers it quickly. “Yes, well, we weren’t able to finish our tour last week. I thought maybe you would like to go out again today while your mother and Killian work.”

The boy looks back at them. “Can I?”

Emma gives him a nod. “Of course, kid.”

Henry turns with a smile before he stops and his eyes go wide. “Wait! I promised David and Mary Margaret I would show them something.”

Killian’s brow goes together. “Show them what, lad?”

He smiles and adjusts the book bag on his back. “Come on!”

The four of them head up to the loft and Killian nods at the Charming’s while Henry rushes to pull something out of his bag. His stomach turns when he sees it’s the boys photo album.

He knows that album because in New York, Henry made it a point to add to it almost every week.

“These are some photos we all took,” he explains as he climbs up onto a stool in the kitchen.

Regina and Snow stand on each side of him while David stands on the opposite side of the counter. Killian looks over at Emma and he can see the emotions run all over her face. Henry starts to explain each photo and they both take slow steps closer.

“Here’s a picture of me and mom right after we moved into our new place in New York… and here we are at her works Christmas party. Oh! Killian, too. I forgot he came after he was done work,” he looks over the boy’s shoulder and his jaw locks. “Mom and Killian were just friends then.”

As the lad flips the page and points to each picture, Killian finds himself smiling as more and more pictures of himself appear.

There’s a picture of him and Emma while they were out to eat and a picture of him and Henry at a hockey game.

“Oh, this is a good picture!” Snow says as she looks up at her daughter. “I’m guessing this was after you guys got together?”

His eyes move to Emma and he can see a slight smile on her face. She’s staring at the photo and he can almost swear her eyes are glassy.

Henry giggles. “No. Still before, but you guys are just seeing what everyone else saw but them.”

His jaw clenches because the lads right, the way he’s holding her close to keep her warm while kissing her forehead, that’s not the way _friends_ look.

The next page holds a photo of the three of them at Central Park during a rainy day, and a picture of himself and Emma she took when they went to go see a baseball game.

They look so _happy_.

The adults stand there and listen as Henry tells the story behind each picture while the Charming’s and Regina listen with rapt attention. They are hanging on his every word and if he’s honest, so is Killian, because he wants to tattoo the memories in his brain so he knows they won’t ever go away.

“This picture was taken the day after Killian asked mom to marry him! I love it, mom looks so pretty.”

He looks down and his breath hitches.

It’s a photo he’s never seen before and Emma doesn’t just look pretty, she looks absolutely _stunning_. The smile on her face is something he hasn’t seen since before they got their memories back and he misses it more than anything.

“Emma,” Snow gasps. “You look beautiful.”

Eyes moving over to her, he’s sees her staring at the picture before she takes a step back and moves to the bathroom. He watches as she walks away while Henry turns back to the photo album, completely unaware of the heartache his trip down memory lane caused.

* * *

Killian reaches up with his hook and shakes a tree that has berries on it that are similar to the ones they found in Regina’s office.

“You’ll look for any excuse to use that thing, won’t you?” David asks with a snort.

He rolls his eyes. “Been without it for a long time, mate. I’m just trying to reacquaint myself.”

They continue to walk in the direction that the berries grow. Emma thought it was best they go look for the bushes when they found traces of them, but she was called away by Snow before they could leave.

“So who’s this Zelena lass? I never heard of her before,” He asks as they walk through the woods.

David sighs and shakes his head. “Snow says she was a midwife back in the Enchanted Forest.”

“Don’t midwife’s usually help during pregnancy?”

“Normally. But we woke up with no memory of Snow even being pregnant, let alone having a child, so she offered to help.”

“Makes sense. Just not sure why they felt the need for Emma to be there.”

David examines another bush and shrugs. “We’re all a little on edge with this Wicked Witch out there and Snow wants to spend as much time with Emma as possible. Plus, she seemed all too willing to run out of the room earlier, something you want to talk about?”

Letting out a huff, he uses his hook to hack at a branch that hangs in front of him.

“Henry called us out on acting strangely this morning. So we had to act normal, well, normal for us in New York. I thought it was going to be the beginning of something… but then he brought out that bloody photo album—”

“For what it’s worth,” David says cutting him off. “You three looked really happy.”

He presses his lips together and gives him a tight smile.

“Aye. We were,” he lets out another sigh. “But now she’s back to being closed off.”

“How did you deal with her being closed off in New York?”

“By pestering her until she finally gave in. But here, she has a ship full of excuses to use at her disposal to avoid me. If we could just get a moment…”

Killian trails off and shakes his head. He knows it’s selfish and their last moment alone didn’t exactly go as planned, but he promised himself that if it were to happen again, he’d stick to just talking.

“Maybe we can help with that.” He looks back at David in confusion. “How about Snow and I take Henry out to dinner tonight? It’ll give you two time alone and give us time with our grandson.” His eyebrows shoot up to his hairline and David chuckles. “Don’t look too shocked. I told you before I’m looking out for my daughter’s future.”

Smirking at him, he says in a playful tone, “Keep trying to help and I’ll think you’ve gone soft on me.” David rolls his eyes. “But I don’t think Emma will go for that. She’s going to see right through us and come up with some excuse.”

David shrugs. “So we don’t tell her. You told me back in New York he’s your son, too. It’s just dinner, I’ll have Snow call Regina and she’ll bring Henry to meet us at the diner, when we’re done, we’ll bring him up to you guys.”

That could… work.

Killian gives him a small smile. “I appreciate it, mate.”

David claps him on the back and they continue to walk through the forest. They stop when they come across a farm house.

“Any clue on who lives here?”

David shakes his head and his hand goes for his gun. The two men slowly walk up to the house and onto the deck. They look inside the windows to see the house fully stocked with furniture and appliances before they quietly walk around the deck.

Rolling his eyes when he sees the bike, he looks back at the Prince, “Wicked Witch that owns a bicycle? Thought it was supposed to be a broomstick?”

David blinks at him surprise. “You’ve seen the movie?”

Voice dripping with boredom, he walks down the steps of the deck, “Henry made us watch almost every one of those blasted films in New York. Seems he had a fascination with you lot even when he couldn’t remember you.”

With amusement in his voice, the Prince asks, “So you’ve seen—”

Holding up his hand to cut him off, “Not a word, mate.”

David snorts and Killian just shakes his head. If there is one thing he wishes he could forget about his time in New York is watching that blasted Pan movie and the way they portrayed him.

“There’s a storm cellar over here, we should probably check it out.”

Their feet crunch on the new fallen snow as they walk over to find it locked. David pulls out his gun, but Killian stops him.

“Whoa, wait, it’s one thing walking around a deserted farmhouse. It’s quite another descending into a one-way cellar with no way out.”

David raises his eyebrows and smirks. “I didn’t know you cared.”

Killian snorts and shakes his head. “Well, seeing as we only have a pistol, hook, and my cunning wit…”

“You scared?”

He rolls his eyes. “There’s a difference between fear and strategy. We know she’s got flying monstrosities. Who knows what’s down there. If this witch is as powerful as we think, we could use some magical backup.”

David sighs and nods his head. “I’ll call Regina.”

“I’ll call Emma.”

It rings three times before she answers.

“Everything okay?”

“Aye, we’re at a farmhouse just pass the troll bridge. We think it might be the Witches, there’s a storm cellar but it’s locked. Your father is calling Regina for some magical assistance… figured you might want to tag along.”

“I’ll be right there.”

“Okay, I…” He stops himself before the words can fall out of his mouth. “Be careful, Swan.”

She gives him a mumbled goodbye before she hangs up and he puts his phone away with a sigh. It’s automatic for him to say ‘I love you’ when they get off the phone, it comes as second nature to him, but now he has to train himself not to.

“Emma’s on her way,” Killian says when David hangs up the phone.

“Good, so is Regina. Let’s send this Witch back to Oz.”

By the time they walk out to the edge of the woods, Emma is pulling up with Regina in her yellow bug. He has to fight the urge to kiss her when he sees her, but he can’t help moving to her when she steps out of the car. Her face visibly relaxes when she sees him and it makes him feel a little better.

Maybe there is still hope after all.

As they walk to the woods, David explains to them how they came across the farmhouse when Emma trips on a branch. Killian immediately reaches out and catches her before she falls.

“You alright, love?”

Her eyes squeeze shut and she nods

“Yeah, sorry. I just got a little light headed,” she mumbles.

His brow goes together as he lifts his hand to her chin. Her face looks pale and she’s breathing slowly.

“Emma, you don’t look well. Perhaps you should see Whale again,” he whispers to her.

She lets out a breath and leans closer to him. His left arm wraps around her waist and he rubs his hook on the small of her back. She whimpers softly before she opens her eyes. He watches the change in her face when she realizes that she’s taking comfort in his arms before she clears her throat and takes a step back.

“Sorry. I skipped lunch and haven’t really had anything to drink.”

They both turn when they hear a huff from Regina. Instantly, a bottle of water and a bag of pretzels appear in her hands before she walks over.

“You need to _eat_ , Emma.”

He looks back and forth between the two women, but Emma avoids his gaze and takes the items from Regina, who looks at him and shrugs.

“Can’t have the Savior weak,” She turns to start walking again. “Let’s go.”

He keeps his eyes on her as they walk, there’s something going on, he doesn’t know what it is, but he has a feeling it has something to with her being sick.

They approach the storm cellar and Emma holds out her arm. “Was that lock busted before?”

Killian and David look at each other.

“No.”

She drops her bottle and the empty bag of pretzels to the ground before grabbing her gun. David walks forward and opens the door quickly. Killian rolls his eyes when Emma moves to go down first and follows right behind her. The cellar is dark, but there is a stale smell in the air and an iron cage in the middle.

“There’s definitely dark magic here,” Regina says with a shiver. “Can you feel it?”

He looks over at Emma to see her twitch and lower her weapon.

“I don’t know. Maybe,” she shrugs her shoulders. “Whatever I feel, it’s not good. What would the Wicked Witch keep in a cage… monkeys?”

David reaches up and pulls a cord, they all blink as the light fills the small room. Killian looks around as his eyes adjust, but he stops when he sees the spinning wheel in the middle of the cage. His heart is pounding in his chest as David walks forward and picks up a piece of straw.

“Now, how many people do we know who can spin straw into gold?”

* * *

He’s quiet the entire ride home. He’s having a hard time trying to process the fact that the Crocodile is alive again. He was dead. They all watched him die.

Centuries he spent trying to kill the Dark One and he gave it all up for Emma. But he can’t deny the fact that when the Crocodile did meet his end, it brought him some salvation. Milah could rest easy knowing that her murderer was gone.

Now he’s back.

His fist is clenching so hard, he can feel nail imprints in his palm.

“Hey, are you okay?” Emma asks as she places her hand on his knee.

He looks up to see they are parked outside of Granny’s. “Fine.”

She presses her lips together and gives him a look, making him sigh as he runs his hand through his hair.

“I don’t know,” he admits. “I just… he’s back… and we’re…” he stops and shakes his head. “I don’t know.”

Her thumb rubs against his knee and he finds it oddly soothing. After a couple moments of silence, she turns to him and gives a small smile.

“Why don’t we go inside, get Henry and order some Granny’s to go, have dinner in our room and just forget about Gold and the Wicked Witch for one night?”

A smile spreads on his face and he looks up at her. “That sounds amazing, love.”

When they get out of the car, she walks over and he has to hide his surprise when she wraps her arms around him. His entire body relaxes as he pulls her to him and buries his face in her hair.

Her head snuggles against his chest before she mumbles, “I don’t want you to sleep on the couch tonight.”

Pulling her closer, he whispers, “Me either. I’d like to sleep in our bed, if you’ll have me.”

She pulls back to look at him through her eyelashes, but instead of responding, she leans up on her toes and places a soft kiss on his lips. He can taste the salt from the pretzels she ate earlier mixed with her chap stick. It’s over way too soon, but when she pulls away they are both smiling.

* * *

Killian listens to Henry go on about Storybrooke with a smile. The lad is so excited and it makes him happy to know that even without his memories, he’s enjoying Storybrooke, and gives him hope that they can make a life there just as they did in New York.

“And there’s this park with a big lake in the middle,” Henry explains excitedly as he waves his arms around. “But the library is awesome. Though it doesn’t seem to have any new books, also the computers are really old. It’s almost like they’ve haven’t updated their systems in years!” He stops his story and looks around. “Where’s mom?”

“She’s down stairs getting us some dinner. We thought it would be nice to spend the night in together just the three of us.”

His face lights up. “So are you two really done fighting?”

Killian gives him a smile. “Aye.”

Henry lets out a sigh of relief. “Good. I don’t like it when you guys fight.”

He reaches over and places his hand on the boy’s arm.

“Neither do I, but I don’t want you to worry about us, we’re going to be fine. You just concentrate on having fun here.” Henry nods. “So your mother tells me you’re going fishing with Gr-Leroy tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” he says with a nod. “I think she’s trying to pawn me off while you two work.”

His brow goes together. “What do you mean, lad? She’s working a case. You know how focused she gets.”

“No, it’s more than that. It’s this town… it’s nice, but, all these old friends she’s never mentioned and people whispering around me all the time. There’s something that she’s not telling me.”

He rests his elbow on the table and runs his hand through his hair. Henry always has been too smart for his own good and they should have known he wasn’t going to buy their stories for long.

“Your mother is just trying to protect you, Henry. There’s… more to play here than we realized. But I promise you, when we know… when _I_ know everything, I will tell you right away.”

Henry looks him over for a couple seconds before he finally nods. Emma comes in minutes later and their conversation switches back to what Henry thinks about Storybrooke which makes her laugh.

It’s good to hear her laugh and he makes it his new life goal to have her do it at least once a day.

“Gosh, mom! You’ve been eating such weird things lately!” Henry giggles.

Her cheeks blush as she sprinkles sugar over her salad. “I’m just cr… wanting something cold and sweet.”

“Why not get some ice cream?” Henry asks.

He watches as she licks her lips and nods. “Ruby is going to send up some ice cream in a little bit. Shit, I really want hot fudge on it.”

She moves to call down but Killian stops her. “I’ll call her, love. You finish eating your… whatever _that_ is.”

His brow goes together when he thinks he sees tears in her eyes as she smiles, but she quickly closes them and looks back down at her food. They finish their dinner and curl up on the couch to watch a movie. All the worries he had earlier in the day go away as he sits there with his family, and later that night, with Emma’s head on his chest, Killian sleeps soundly for the first time in weeks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The pictures I used can be found on my Tumblr, I take zero credit for them


	21. Chapter Twenty-One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> can you believe once is back this sunday! ahh, it's been a hell of a hiatus! double line breaks means POV change!

Emma checks to make sure Henry is still sleeping before she leaves and locks the door behind her. Rushing down the back stairs of the Inn, she walks into the diner to see everyone waiting for her. Killian gives her a small smile and she feels her cheeks start to tint. 

It’s almost like their relationship is brand new again and she couldn’t be happier. Ever since he first wrapped himself around her yesterday morning, she realized she couldn’t live without the feeling of being in his arms, they always made her feel safe and she refuses to give them up.

Then they found out Gold was alive… she could see how his body physically reacted to the news and all she wanted to do was make him feel better, screw holding herself back anymore out of fear

Because after the fight they had and how hurt he looked, she no longer doubts his feelings for her, she dare thinks he may even still love her, but that really was never the main issue. 

The day before, her mother talked her ear off for an hour about love and hope and she’s finally starting to understand it. Even though there is still a large part of her that believes he will leave once he finds out she’s pregnant, she’s going to have hope that he won’t.

She just has to work up the courage to tell him about the pregnancy first.

“Now that the sun’s up, we should hit every place Gold might go…” David suggests. “His house, his shop, his cabin.”

Emma takes a seat on a stool next to Killian and sighs. “Because dead men love vacation homes.”

Her mother walks over to her and hands her a cup of cocoa, making her roll her eyes.

_ Forget to eat one day and everyone goes crazy. _

“Can someone explain to me how this is even possible? We all saw Gold. He…” She shivers at the memory.

“Disappeared into nothingness. I know,” Snow says as she hands a building block to her little brother who is sitting on top of a mat on the floor playing with toys.

She stares at her him as she sips her drink. In a little under nine months she’s going to have one of her own, and this time, it’ll be real. No fake memories of raising a baby, she’s actually going to do it. 

Fear creeps up into her at the thought. 

She’s never _actually_ raised a baby, the memories she has are Regina’s. What if she fails? What if she doesn’t know how? She doesn’t know the first thing about being a parent to a baby, or how a child should be raised. 

“Uh, Swan?”

Snapping out of her thoughts, she looks up to see everyone staring at her. “What?”

Killian’s eyes move to her mug and she looks down. Her cup of cocoa is boiling and almost bubbling over, quickly putting the mug on the counter, she chuckles nervously. “Sorry.”

She can feel him staring at her and she knows he’s not going to let her go much longer with her lies. Taking a deep breath, she summons up the courage and mouths the word ‘later’ to him. Unconvinced, he arches his eyebrow at her.

“I promise,” she whispers.

His lips twitch and he gives her a quick nod before they turn back to the group.

“Maybe Neal knows something,” David suggests.

She starts to squirm in her seat when her father brings up her ex’s name because she has mixed feelings about Neal. When he came back into her life, she let go of her anger toward him, forgave him, then admitted to herself that she still loved him when she thought he was dead.

Then there was Hook.

From the moment they met, there was just something about him, she felt drawn to him in a way she never felt with anyone before. But he was helping Cora so she brushed it off as nothing, until he came back with the bean and offered his services to help find Henry. 

_ “Perhaps I just needed reminding that I could.” _

The look in his eyes when he said that… it still gives her shivers when she thinks about it, but she told herself that it was wrong, that she _shouldn’t_ feel that way for him, so she denied it.

Until she kissed him and her whole world changed. She couldn’t deny it anymore, there was something between them… that kiss had her spinning for hours.

Then Neal was alive and she really wished that he wasn’t, because dealing with the pain he put her through was worse. It was then she realized that part of her would always love him, he gave her Henry, but she wasn’t _in love_ with him anymore, he was her past, but he wanted to fight for her. 

Before she even had a chance to tell him that there was nothing left to fight for, the threat of Pan’s curse came.

Now, there’s a possibility of him being out there and they have no idea if he’s okay. The worst part is that Henry still has no idea who he is. As far as he knows, Neal left her before he was born and they’ve never met.

Letting out a sigh, she says, “But Neal is… He’s… We don’t know what he is or if he’s even here.”

Killian goes tense next to her and she knows it must be killing him. He told her she would have to choose in Neverland, then they left together while Neal was forced to stay behind and fell in love. Now they are back and their relationship is up in the air while they try to search for her the Wicked Witch.

When she looks over at him, he gives her a forced smile and it makes her chest ache because she misses his genuine smiles.

Her little brother starts to make a fuss making everyone stop talking as Snow kneels down to try and calm him.

Keeping her voice low, she leans closer to him, “Do you think we can make time to talk soon?”

“What’s wrong?”

Butterflies form in her stomach as she bites her lip and says, “I’d like to talk about us.”

His eyes widen and his mouth drops, making her giggle softly.

Looking down at his lap, the tips of his ears turning pink, he chuckles before whispering, “I’d like that very much, Emma.”

When his lips turn up, it’s so beautiful, she can’t help but lean over and kiss it. He hesitates for half a second before he’s kissing her back while his hand reaches up to tug at the ends of her hair. It isn’t until they hear a throat clearing that they finally pull away. 

Seeing everyone’s eyes on them, she instantly starts to blush and hides her face in his shoulder while he fights his grin and puts his hand on her knee.

He clears his throat. “Apologies.”

She finally looks forward when her cheeks don’t feel warm. She sees her mother smiling, her father with his arms crossed, and Regina with her hands on her hips.

“I’m sorry what were you saying?”

Regina rolls her eyes. “I’m going to head back to that farmhouse.”

Nodding, she tells her, “Okay. Just be careful.”

“Well, she’s the one who needs to be careful,” Emma raises her eyebrows at the Mayor. “She invaded my space. When I return the favor, I’m not pulling any punches.”

Killian makes a noise and when she looks over at him, she sees him roll his eyes.

“We should tell Belle about Gold,” David suggests after Regina walks out. 

“You’re right, she deserves to know. Just let me run to the bathroom first,” her mother turns to her with a smile. “Emma, want to hold your little brother?”

Her eyes go wide and she looks at Killian and David before she turns back to her mother. “Uh, what? No, I don’t…”

The baby is shoved in her arms before she can finish and her body goes stiff. Snow gives her a knowing smirk before she rushes off to the bathroom. She’s holding him out in front of her like a sack of potatoes while he sucks on his bink and stares at her with wide eyes. When his arms reach out for her face, her heart instantly melts and she feels her lips curving into a smile. 

Pulling him close to her chest, he giggles. “Hey little guy.”

“Seems he likes his big sister.”

Emma looks up to see her father starting at her and tears prick her eyes. Not too long ago, she believed she was alone in the world, an orphan that had no family, now, she has the son she gave up, a mother, a father, a baby brother, a man she loves, and another baby on the way.

More family than she could have ever dreamed of. 

“Yeah,” she answers. “It seems he does.”

* * *

“So… so Rumple’s alive?” Belle gasps out as she stares at the golden straw. “I mean, how is that even possible?”

Emma leans forward in her chair. “We were hoping you might be able to tell us that. You know him and this shop better than anyone. If he’s in Storybrooke, there has to be a clue in here about how he got back or how we can find him now that he is.”

Belle’s eyes stay on the straw, her face is full of sorrow and Emma can feel herself starting to get choked up again.

_ Damn hormones. _

“Yeah,” she whispers. “I’ll start looking right away.”

Her heart breaks for the librarian, she can’t imagine what it would be like to watch then man you love die, then for him to come back. Her eyes move to Killian and she has to force herself to stay calm, the thought of losing him… she wouldn’t be able to bear it.

“Keep your eyes out for him, too. If he comes into town…” David trails off.

Belle looks up and nods. “He’ll come to me. Yeah, I know.”

Emma looks over at Snow, who gives her a slight nod, there should be someone that stays with Belle to watch over her just in case something happens, but they have to go out for a search. Her eyes move back to Killian and she can tell he’s thinking the same, and he rolls his eyes.

“I will stay here with you,” he announces with a sigh. “I’m surprisingly good at research.”

Belle looks back at him with her mouth open. “ _You_ will stay with me?”

She leans forward and puts her hand on Belle’s arm. “He’ll protect you if the witch comes.”

The brunette’s head snaps back to her. “You do know he tried to kill me.”

Emma flinches. It’s easy for her to forget all of the bad things he’s done in his past, but she knows he’s trying to make amends for them. 

“Well, there were extenuating circumstances,” he explains with a wave of his hand.

“Twice!”

Shaking his head with wide eyes, he shrugs, “Sorry?”

“You really know how to charm a girl, don’t you?” Emma hisses with a hard glare.

He presses his lips at her before he turns back to Belle. “This will be my way of making it up to you.”

Belle rolls her eyes. “Fine.”

“All right, we should really get out into the woods.” Snow turns to her. “Can you do me a favor and watch your little brother while your father and I go?”

Her mouth drops open and she looks David before turning back to Snow. “What? You want me to sit home and _babysit_?”

“Well, I am the best tracker here,” Her mother explains. “Plus, Zelena is supposed to come over. You can tell me everything she says about… Leo.”

She doesn’t miss the pointed look she’s given and sighs because she knows arguing will be no use. She’s been pushing Emma to use Zelena for help ever since she found out she’s a midwife. 

“Fine. But I’m only agreeing to this _because_ you are the best tracker here. Next time, we need to find another babysitter.”

Both her parents agree and they stand to leave. Without even thinking, Emma leans over the counter and gives Killian a soft kiss goodbye.

“Call me if anything comes up,” she whispers to him.

“As you wish.”

* * *

Leo giggles as she blows raspberries on his stomach and she can’t get over how adorable his laugh is. 

“Do you like that, buddy?” she asks with a big smile. 

She has his arms in her hands as he sits on the table in front of her, while his chubby hands move to tap her face and he starts to gurgle.

With a laugh, she leans forward and rubs her nose against his, “I think that means you do.”

Pulling Leo down to her lap, she takes her phone out of her pocket. “How about we take a picture and send it to mom and dad?”

Leo shrieks in excitement and it makes her laugh again, he’s such a happy kid, nothing like the memories Regina gave her of Henry where he cried all the time. She hunches down so their faces are together and right before the picture is taken, Leo gives the biggest smile she’s ever seen. She attaches the photo to a group message to her parent’s, and, after a quick internal debate, Killian, as well, and hits send. 

A half an hour later, after she’s put Leo down for his nap, she finally looks to see their responses.

** EMMA. <3<3<3 – S **

** He looks just like you. – D  **

** Beautiful. – K  **

She chews on her nails as she stares at her phone. Back in New York, they used to text all the time when they weren’t together and it’s something that she misses.

** How’s researching going? – E **

Her stomach growls after she sends the message, so she goes to her parent’s kitchen and starts to raid their fridge. Spotting some leftover chicken, her mouth starts to water. Her fingers tap against the counter while the chicken heats up in the microwave, it seems like it’s taken forever and she’s _starving_. She spies a jar of peanut butter and grabs it along with a fork and knife. When her chicken is done, she makes her way back to the table to eat her meal.

** I’m winning her over, I can feel it. – K **

** Be nice. – E  **

** I’m always a gentleman. Have you eaten anything yet today? – K **

She rolls her eyes, ever since her almost fainting spell yesterday, he’s been watching her like a hawk. Last night, he refused to leave the table in their room until she finished her meal, so she takes a picture of her lunch and sends it to him.

** That looks absolutely horrid, Swan. You’re going to make yourself sick again. – K **

_ No, it’s called being pregnant and having weird cravings.  _

** It’s delicious! Don’t judge me. – E **

** I wouldn’t dream of it, though I’m starting to question your tastes in food. How is babysitting? – K **

** Weird. I have a little brother. – E  **

** That you do. – K  **

She sits back in her chair as she chews her chicken and brings her feet up onto her seat.

** He went down easy though, remember how hard it was to get Henry to go to sleep in New York? – E  **

He used to give them so much trouble, especially on the weekends when he didn’t have a bed time. Henry would sit on their couch with his eyes literally rolling into the back of his head but would still refuse to go to sleep.

** Aye, interrupted some very important things from time to time. – K **

She snorts because she knows exactly what he’s talking about. It had to have been the last time she got her period, and when it was finally over, it was a Saturday night. Killian was so worked up, when she whispered to him that it was done, he joked about giving Henry a sleeping pill so they could go into the bedroom. When he finally fell asleep on the couch, Killian carried him to his room while she went to go change. She barely heard Henry’s bedroom door shut, before he pounced on her like an uncaged animal. 

** I don’t remember that ever stopping you. – E  **

** Never. I don’t remember you ever complaining. – K **

A blush forms on her cheeks and she bites her lip.

** Never. – E **

When there’s a knock at the door, she’s surprised to see that twenty minutes has gone by, texting Killian always was addicting.

** Duty calls, I have to go. Call me if anything comes up. – E  **

** As you wish. – K **

When she opens the front door, Zelena gives her a big smile.

“Emma! It’s so good to see you again, dear. How are you feeling?”

They make their way into the loft and sit down at the table.

“Better. I had a little bit of a dizzy spell yesterday after we left here. I forgot to eat something. But the morning sickness has cut down some.”

Zelena presses her lips together. “Emma, you must remember to eat. It’s not just you anymore.”

She sighs. “I know, yesterday was just… it was a weird day. I’ll do better from now on.”

The redhead gives her a little smile and puts her hands on the table. “Good. Now, you’ve already gone through labor once, so at least you know what to expect.”

Emma chuckles. “Yeah, the last time I went through labor it was a little different.”

“Well, keep in mind the second birth can progress much faster than the first.” Her knee starts to bounce up and down and she bites her lip. “How are you feeling, Emma? Your mother told me that you still haven’t told the father yet.”

She blinks up at the woman in surprise. “She did?”

Zelena nods. “I don’t mean to pry, but it seems to me you have some anxiety about all of this.”

Sighing, she runs her hand through her hair. “No, I mean… yes, I haven’t told him. I plan to, but things have been crazy lately and—”

“Henry’s father left you.” She takes a deep breath and nods. “It’s tragic, what happened. But, I think it’s best to just get these anxieties out in the open. Feelings, especially those we keep bottled up, can affect a pregnancy just as much as diet and exercise. We all know your life isn’t exactly easy… look, I suppose what I’m trying to say is that you shouldn’t put any unwanted stress on yourself.”

Emma rolls her eyes. Unwanted stress is something that comes all too quickly now that she is back in Storybrooke and it isn’t something she can just easily walk away from. But she knows she’s going to have to at least make the effort to try.

So she just gives Zelena a tentative smile and nods.

* * *

* * *

Killian sits at the table in their room tapping his lips, Emma should be there any minute and he’s never been more nervous in his life. 

Okay, he was more nervous when he proposed to her, but he’s still nervous. They have their memories back and he’s about to lay it all out on the line. 

He loves her, he wants to be with her, memories or not, the rest is up to her.

Something in him says she still loves him, he can feel it, but the walls he spent so much time breaking down came back up like a barricade the moment she got her memories back. He just needs to remind her that things haven’t changed.

He loved her before and he loves her now.

The door opens and his breath catches in his chest when Emma gives him a small smile.

“Hey, sorry. I was talking to Zelena and kind of lost track of time.”

Shaking his head, he tells her, “’S alright, love. Your father says she’s midwife and she’s offered to help Snow with the little Prince?”

She hesitates for a quick second before she nods and takes off her coat. His brow goes together when he sees her body tense before she gives a forced smile, trying to mask it.

“Yeah.”

She goes to walk past him, but he reaches out with his hook and catches her arm. “Swan, what’s going on? Is there something with this Zelena lass that I don’t know about?”

She sighs and shakes her head. “No. She’s a midwife and she’s helping.”

Studying her for a quick second, he decides to let it go, and nods before her eyes move around the room, nose wrinkling in confusion.

“Where’s Henry?”

He lets go of her arm and scratches the back of his ear. “I, uh, I asked your parent’s and Regina if they would take him for lunch… so we could have a chance to talk.” His voice softens at the last part of the sentence.

“Oh.”

He stands up from his seat and Emma takes a step back. “You did say you wanted to talk, love.”

She swallows before licking her lips. “I do. But Killian, Gold’s alive… we haven’t found this Wicked Witch yet…”

He moves closer to her and takes her hand in his own.  “All the more reason to enjoy the quiet moments, and right now… we have a quiet moment.”

Motioning the to the table, he lets out a breath of relief when she gives him a small smile and moves to sit. He pulls out her chair for her and has to bite his lip when he sees her cheeks tint. He takes a seat next to her and they both sit there in silence, before he sees her fingers move to play with her engagement ring, making him smile. 

Slowing, he lifts his hand and brushes his fingers against her own to get her attention. She doesn’t pull away, but when she looks down at them, her brow goes together.

“Everything that happened between us,” she finally starts in a low voice. “The Enchanted Forest… Neverland… New York…”

“We’ve been through a lot,” he whispers.

She pulls her hand back and rubs it down her face. “Maybe too much.”

His head snaps over to her. “You can’t believe that.”

Tears form in her eyes as she reaches up to wipe her nose. “I don’t want to, but things have been said—”

He huffs and leans forward. “What things? You mean the fight we had? You called me a pirate, Swan. It wasn’t the first time, nor will it be the last, I don’t care about that.”

She crosses her arms over her chest while her knee starts to bounce. “I wasn’t talking about that. But I am sorry, I was cruel. My emotions are all over the place lately…”

“Don’t be sorry. I _am_ a pirate. Never said I wasn’t.” Her lips twitch at that and he moves even closer to her. “What were you talking about, then?”

He feels her knee bounce a little harder before she eventually shoots up from her seat and starts to pace. 

Letting out a sigh, he sits back in his seat.  “Emma, _talk_ to me. You did before, in New York, here is no different.”

“You told David that our engagement was irrelevant!” she suddenly cries out. “What am I supposed to think after I hear something like that?”

He looks at her like she’s lost her mind and he stands up. “I said that because of _you_! Because I thought once you got your memories back…”

“That the last year wouldn’t matter to me?” she chuckles dryly as a tear runs down her face.

He pushes his hair away from his forehead and shrugs. “Can you blame me? It’s hardly like your feelings for me before we left were—”

“You have no idea how I felt about you before we left.”

Taking a step toward her, hope rising in his chest, he asks, “And how did you feel about me, Swan?”

Her fingers move to fidget with her ring again and her eyes close. He can tell she’s absolutely terrified, but she’s not running, so he takes another step closer to her. 

“Emma.”

“I don’t know,” she groans out. “I don’t know how I felt about you! All I know is that I _did_ feel something. Y-you came back. You were there! You helped us get Henry… and then we left Neverland, and Neal wanted to try… But all I could think about was you.”

The last part comes out in a whisper but he hears her loud and clear. He knows this is a serious situation, but every hope, every dream he had before they left is coming true, she _did_ have feelings for him back then, even if she never showed him.

Tears shine in her eyes as she continues. “Then Pan did what he did and I had to…”

“Leave,” he finishes for her.

She looks up at him in wonder. “And you came with me.”

His eyes connect with hers. “Aye, I did.”

“Why did you?”

Her face is full of confusion and it hurts him. 

Voice soft, “You already know the answer to that, love.”

Her breath catches. “Do you think we can just continue what we had in New York? This is Storybrooke, Killian. There’s a crisis going on.”

He closes his eyes and huffs out. “There’s _always_ a crisis! Perhaps you should consider living your life during them. Otherwise, you might miss it.” A watery laugh escapes her lips but she doesn’t say anything. “Just tell me what you want, Swan. Do you want me to forget about the past year? It’ll be hard, one of the hardest things I’ll ever have to do, but if that’s what you want—”

Cutting him off, she mumbles, “I don’t want that.”

He licks his bottom lip and stares at her. He knows it’s the closest thing he’s gotten to how she feels and he should be grateful, but he’s a greedy bastard and wants to hear the actual words. 

“Do you want to be with me?”

Her chest starts to heave up and down but her mouth stays stubbornly shut. The fear is clearly evident on her face and it makes him crave for easier times when her walls were gone and a simple kiss from him would unlock all the secrets she was too scared to admit.

He runs his hand through his hair in frustration. He can feel himself starting to get choked up as he watches her cry in front of him because all he wants to do is pull her into his arms.

“What do you want?” He practically groans. 

Shaking her head, she cries out, “It’s not that simple!”

“Aye, it is,” he insists. “I love you, Emma. I want you and Henry, I want the life we had and we can have it here. You just have to want it too.”

She goes stiff and her mouth drops open before she breathes out in disbelief, “You love me?”

There’s a look of shock that crosses her face and it confuses him. Surely she knows this already, how can she not? She’s consumed his thoughts from the moment he met her in the Enchanted Forest, but the way she is looking at him, it’s like it’s brand new information.

So he does the only thing he can think of, he takes a step forward, and collides his lips with hers. She chokes out a sob before her body sags into his, her hands gripping his waist as he uses his hook to push her closer to him. Their lips glide softly against each other before he forces himself to pull back. 

With his forehead resting against hers, he gives her a small smile. “Did you ever doubt I did?”

She lets out a stuttering breath that passes across his lips.

“I thought…” she whimpers. “I thought you didn’t want this anymore.”

Kissing her again, he murmurs against her lips, “Have I not made my intentions known since Neverland? Why would you ever think such a thing?”

She shakes her head. “Things are different now, _we’re_ different now.”

Pulling back a fraction of an inch, he whispers, “I’m not different, love. I still love you just as much, if not more, than I did the night I asked you to marry me.” Her eyes close and a smile forms while a lone tear runs down her face. “The questions is, are you?”

Her eyes snap open and he finds himself holding his breath as his heart starts to pound in his chest. 

“There’s something—”

A pounding on their door interrupts her and they both look over.

“Emma! Hook! Open up!”

His brow goes together when he hears David’s voice. The Prince promised him time to speak to her and now he’s interrupting them.

Emma wipes her face as he moves to open the door. It’s not even fully open when David comes storming in.

“I’m sorry, you two,” he looks at them with sorrow in his eyes. “I really am. But we have to get to the hospital right away.”

“Henry? Is he…” Killian asks frantically.

David shakes his head. “He’s fine. Regina has him.”

“Dad, what’s wrong?”

He sighs and looks over at his daughter. “Neal’s back.”

* * *

* * *

Emma rushes into the hospital with Killian and David right behind her. Her heart is pounding in her chest and her body is shaking. 

When she reaches the room, she sees Belle sitting on the end of the bed while Neal is sitting up, he looks tired but all around he seems okay.

“Neal! You’re here.”

He looks at her and his face lights up before he pulls her into his arms and Emma closes her eyes. It feels familiar, but it’s not the same feeling she gets when she’s in Killian’s arms. 

She’s the one that pulls back and looks him over. “What happened?”

“A lot,” he sighs as he runs his hand over his face.

She blinks, “You remember?”

“Bits and pieces. It’s like someone took certain parts of my memories out, but I remember some things.”

“Do you know who the Wicked Witch is?” David asks as he takes a step forward.

“No,” he shakes his head. “But I do know that you all met her back there.”

Emma’s head snaps back over to her father who raises his eyebrows.

“We did?”

He nods. “She was in the castle when you guys got there. The last time I saw you, she had just stolen your courage.”

Her brow goes together. “His courage?”

“Well, a symbol is what Regina called it,” Neal explains. “You faced a demon and beat it, then your sword disappeared.”

She looks back at her father. “Do you have your sword?”

He shakes his head. “No. I’ve been using a replacement.”

“The Wicked Witch took it,” Neal explains. “Before I left, you were trying to figure out why she would need it.”

“Belle,” she turns to the librarian. “Can you do some research?”

The brunette nods and stands. “Yeah, absolutely.”

She gives Neal’s arm a squeeze with a small smile before rushing out of the room.

“Hey, guys, can we… can we have a minute?”

Emma sees Killian go tense and his jaw start to clench. He’s battling with himself, she can tell, he wants to stay, but he also wants to give Neal what he wants. No matter what the three of them have gone through, she knows he still has a soft spot in his heart for him because of Milah.

“Of course,” David responds.

She gives Killian a small smile, but he only nods before he follows her father out of the room. She watches him walk out and doesn’t turn back until Neal touches her arm.

“It’s good to see you,” he says softly. “And even better to have you remember me.”

She gives him a shy smile and nods.

He shakes his head. “Has it really been a year and a half?”

“Yeah.”

“When can I see Henry?”

She lets out a sigh and squirms slightly. “Neal, I don’t…”

“I know… Okay, I know I can’t just come barging back into your life, but…”

Putting her hand on his arm, she keeps her voice in a comforting tone, “No, it’s… it’s not that. My memories came back, but his… He doesn’t remember anything… the curse, his old life…”

“Me,” Neal whispers. They are both silent for a couple seconds before he clears his throat. “What does his know about his father?”

She winces. “What I knew until about two weeks ago, which was that you let me go to jail and never came back for us.”

He sits up, crying out, “But I didn’t have a choice. You _know_ that!”

Her tongue pokes out to lick her lips and she has to clench her jaw to keep from lashing out. She may have forgiven him for what he did, but that doesn’t mean she accepts it.

Neal shakes his head and crosses his arms with a huff. “So my son has no clue who I really am. He just thinks that I’m the jerk that abandoned him.”

She gives him a sad look because she knows Henry’s feelings toward him at the moment are exactly that. 

He is no one to him.

“What about Hook?”

Going stiff, she answers with indifference, “What about him?”

Neal chuckles. “Don’t play dumb, Emma. I’m the one that told him to go with you, remember?”

She sighs and looks down at her lap, the ring is still on her finger but she’s kept it hidden so that he doesn’t see it. She knows he deserves to know, but right now just isn’t the time, especially since their conversation was interrupted by him returning.

“Yes, I remember, Neal.”

“So, what happened?”

She brushes her hair behind her shoulder. “He was our neighbor, lived next door to us in New York.”

“Are you two together?”

Sighing, she tilts her head. “Neal…”

He lets out a dry chuckle and shakes his head. “Why doesn’t that surprise me?”

Her eyes close as she tries to hold back her anger. He’s not the first person that has said that since they’ve come back, and she always just ignored it, but the way Neal said it makes her mad for some reason.

“I think we should just worry about what’s going on right now.”

He looks at her for a couple seconds before he nods. “But he clearly remembers…”

“Yeah, uh, David came to New York. He brought his hook with him and that’s how he got his memories back, then David gave him a potion for me.”

“If that worked for him, maybe it could work for Henry?”

She snorts. “You think Henry will get his memories back by touching Killian’s hook?” She ignores the way he looks at her when she uses Killian’s real name instead of his moniker and continues. “I doubt it.”

He shakes his head. “No. But there has to be _something_ out there. We have to get his memories back. We have to fix this. I’m his father. I want him to know who I am.”

* * *

* * *

Killian’s fist clenches and unclenches as he sits in the hospital chair. There are a mixture of emotions flowing through him, on one hand, he feels extremely happy to see Bae again, to know that he’s alive and well, he couldn’t be more thrilled. 

But on the other hand, he’s Emma’s first love and Henry’s father.

He’s considered _himself_ Henry’s father for the past year and the thought of having that taken away from him hurts him to his core, but Bae is the boy’s birthh father and he deserves to remember him. 

Sitting back, he lets out a sigh, maybe if they had gotten to finish their conversation, he would be more calm, if he had her answer, it would be better, but they never got that far. So he’s sitting there battling two completely different feelings. The last time he felt so conflicted was when he decided to back off to give Emma and Neal a chance.

His head snaps over to David when he feels his hand on his knee. “If you don’t stop bouncing your knee, I may scream.”

David removes his hand and sits back in his seat. 

“Apologies,” he mumbles.

“I’m guessing this isn’t easy for you.”

Chuckling, he answers in a sarcastic tone, “Why Dave, I have no idea what you mean.”

The Prince shakes his head and leans forward to rest his elbows on his knees. “I’m sorry this happened when you two were…” he trails off and Killian just nods. It’s not his fault, if anything, they both probably would have been upset if he didn’t come get them. “Did you get anywhere, at least?”

He sighs and wipes his palm on his thigh. “We talked, I told her I loved her, that just because we are here doesn’t change things.”

“Does she feel the same way?”

Killian tilts his head with a shrug. “I don’t know, you came up before she could answer. But when I asked if her she wanted me to forget about us, she said she didn’t want that. So, that’s something.”

A smile breaks out on David’s face before he puts his hand on Killian’s shoulder. “That’s great, Hook, really. I’m happy to hear it.”

The two men exchange a nod before Emma comes out of the room. Killian jumps from his seat as soon as he sees her. “How is he?”

“He’s fine. I told him he should stay here, let the doctors look over him.”

His brow goes together because he knows that Bae isn’t going to like sitting in a hospital for too long, especially after he finds out that his father may still be alive. “Did you tell him about his father?”

She sighs and her face shows hesitance, “Yeah. He’s… I don’t know. I feel like he’s keeping something back…”

“Well, he did say there were parts of his memories missing, Emma,” David says as he walks up to them.

Looking down at her feet, she mumbles, “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

But Killian doesn’t buy it, when Emma feels like there’s something off, she’s usually right. 

“We should go and continue to try and find Gold. Maybe he can shed some light on Neal’s missing memories.”

“Aye. I’ll stay here and keep watch over Bae, make sure he doesn’t leave.”

She raises her eyebrow. “You?”

He nods. “You and I both know if he’s left alone, it won’t be long before he leaves. Go with your father, if something should happen, I’ll call.”

She stares at him for a couple seconds before she nods and walks out with David. He ignores the ache in his chest at her lack of a kiss goodbye and tries to tell himself it has nothing to do with the man in the other room.

When he walks back in, he sees Bae sitting in the bed staring at the mark on his hand. He noticed it when they first walked into the room, but forgot to mention it in all the confusion. 

Bae notices him in the doorway and drops his hands. “They put you on babysitting duty, huh? What, no one trusted me to stay here?”

Killian sighs and reaches up to scratch his ear. “Emma’s simply concerned about you. She thought it best you weren’t out in the cold running after your father.” Bae just nods and he raises his eyebrow. “You don’t seem too shocked that he’s alive.”

He ignores his comment and motions to him, “Thank you, by the way.”

“For playing nanny?”

“For going with them. For giving up… _everything_. That was very big of you.”

Killian looks down and shuffles his feet. “You would have done the same if you could.”

With a chuckle, Bae shrugs, “Yeah, well, you were the one who suggested it first.”

The two men fall silent, he doesn’t know what Emma told him about them, but he has a feeling it wasn’t much. It’s not that he blames her, there are much more important things going on, and he wants to spare Bae the pain. 

“So you two are together?”

_ So much for sparing him the pain. _

Sighing, he shakes his head. “Perhaps this is a conversation you should be having with Emma.”

“Come on, man,” Bae whispers with a tilt of his head. “I already knew how you felt about her before. You think I’m going to blame you for feeling the same way when you had no memories?”

He reaches up and wipes his lips. “We’re together.” Bae sucks in a breath and he can see the sorrow on his face. “Or, we were. I’m not sure what we are now.”

“Things complicated?”

Killian huffs out a breath. “That’s putting it lightly.”

The man rubs his thighs. “Were you guys happy?”

He looks at him and nods.

“Aye,” he answers softly. “We were.”

“And Henry?”

Killian licks his bottom lip. He knows that Emma will be upset for telling Bae these things, but he doesn’t want to lie to him, he’s already failed him before, he in no way intends to do it again.

He can’t help the way his lips curve as he speaks of Henry, “He’s amazing, such a smart lad. You’d be proud of him, Bae.”

The smile the other man gives him is full of longing and regret. “And you gave up this happy life to bring her back here to Storybrooke?”

“How do you mean?”

“Emma told me you got your memories back first. That you were the one that gave her the potion.”

He shrugs his shoulder and loops his thumb through his belt. “It was the right thing to do.”

Bae laughs. “Yeah. What’s it feel like to play the hero after being a pirate for so long?”

Pressing his lips together, he shuffles his feet. “Unfamiliar. And you… How does it feel to play the villain?”

The man looks at him with a raised eyebrow. “I’m a villain now?”

“Well, you had a hand in bringing your father back, since you weren’t surprised by the fact that he’s alive,” Killian motions to the hand Bae is trying to hide. “I suspect you had to use the darkest of magic and paid an even darker price, though I’m sure you felt the ends justified the means.”

Bae looks at him for a few moments before he leans up and rips the tubing from his hand. 

“I should be out there helping them. I need to set this right with my son.” He explains as he stands and gathers his belongings. Killian flinches at his words but stays silent as Bae walks up to him. “Question is, are you going to stand in my way?”

He shrugs. “I am in your way.”

Bae stares at him and before either can say anything else, Killian pulls him forward and wraps his arm around his shoulders, he feels him go stiff, but he doesn’t pull away. Closing his eyes, he lets old feelings wash over him, having Bae in his arms almost feels like Milah is in his arms again and it brings him joy but also sorrow… sorrow for the time they lost, for the time they could have had together if he hadn’t let him down so long ago. 

“What the hell are you doing?”

“This is long overdue,” Killian whispers. He holds him for a couple more seconds before he pulls back and rests his hand on his shoulder. “Sometimes, when I look at you, all I see is a man. I forget that, beneath it all, you’re still that boy… the one I looked after all those years ago.”

Bae’s face softens. “I haven’t forgotten.”

Smiling at him, he places his hand on the man’s shoulder. Their time together was brief, but it is something that will always stick with him.

“We got caught up in so much nonsense over… a woman,” he explains with the shake of his head.

He loves Emma, loves her more than anything in his life, and he doesn’t regret the decisions he’s made when it comes to her, but he does regret that he let it come between him and Bae.

“I need to do this, Killian.” He sucks his breath in at the sound of his actual name. “You know that, right?”

Rolling his eyes slightly, he pats Bae’s shoulder before stepping aside. “You have ten minutes, and then I alert the others you’ve gone.”

Bae gives him his thanks and walks out. Killian’s lips curve into a smile because for the first time, he feels that he’s done something right by him.


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> god, how i worked my ass off on this chapter probably just to get yelled at. but i still love you guys. double line breaks means change of POV

** Chapter Twenty-Two **

“How was Neal?”

Emma looks over at her father as they continue to search through the woods.

“Um,” she starts. “Okay, I still feel like he was keeping something from me, but I don’t know. Seeing him again… was hard.”

“Because of Hook?”

She looks down at the ground as she continues to walk but stays silent. Right before he showed up at their room, she was prepared to tell Killian that yes, she does want to be with him. But now she feels guilt, the way Neal looked at her was like his whole world was right again, but she doesn’t feel the same way.

He will always be in her heart, he will _always_ be Henry’s father, but she’s not the same girl she was when she first met him. She’s different and she’s in love with someone else.

“Look, Emma,” he starts when she doesn’t say anything. “I just want you to know that it’s okay, with your mother and me, you and Hook. He _did_ help us back in Neverland and he saved my life. He also gave up everything…”

“I know,” she says in a whisper.

She can feel herself getting upset again and has to force her tears to stay at bay.

_Damn hormones_.

“I guess I just feel guilty.”

“Over Neal? Emma, you can’t let your past interfere with your future.”

She sighs. “Dad, do you really think Hook and I would have gotten together if we didn’t have to leave?”

He laughs and puts his arm around her shoulders. “Emma, do you forget that it took me coming to get you for you to even consider talking to Neal? I think you made up your mind about him long before you had to leave. It might not have been _because_ of Hook, but something tells me he would have benefited from that decision in the end.”

She presses her lips together and raises her eyebrow. “Since when did you become ‘Team Hook’?”

“Since I came to New York and found him engaged to my daughter. The same daughter who had walls built so high the last time I saw her, she refused to let anyone in.”

She looks up at him, her face softening.

“But you let him in,” he continues. “He must have done something right for you to agree to marry him.”

Trying to hide her smile, she says, “He was himself, minus the hook… we just didn’t have someone trying to kill us all the time, we only had us and Henry to worry about.”

“That sounds like a pretty happy life.”

Softly, she nods. “It was… But it wasn’t real?”

It comes out as a question because she’s not even sure anymore, every time she’s tried to tell herself that, flashes to what Killian said to her runs through her mind.

_“Swan, how I felt, how I still feel for you, is the most real thing I know.”_

They weren’t said with any hint of a lie, he spoke the complete and utter truth.

David pulls her closer to him. “It was, Emma. Remember what Regina told you, your past wasn’t real, but your future was, and you made that future with Hook. Are really telling me that just because you got your memories back you don’t love him anymore?”

“No! That’s what’s confusing me.”

“Don’t let it,” he tells her. “You two fell in love. That’s all that matters.”

She opens her mouth to respond when they hear a yell out in the distance. They look up to see Gold running through the woods.

“Gold!” She yells as they follow him. “You all right?”

He crumbles to his knees and puts his head in his hands. His hair's a mess and his clothes, the same clothes he was wearing when he sacrificed himself, are torn and dirty.

“No, no, no, not all right!” Gold cries out. “Not all right! It's… I can’t quiet the voices!”

Standing before him, she watches as his body shakes and he groans in pain. She takes a step forward and tries to touch him, but he freaks out and it makes her stop. He continues to rock back and forth as she kneels before him.

“We know that you were held captive by the witch. Do you know who she is?’

Gold starts to nod. “Yeah! She’s… ahh!” he screams out and squeezes his eyes shut. “There’s no room! No room! There’s too many voices, too many voices!”

With fear in her eyes, she continues to stare at him, she doesn’t know what to do to help and it makes her feel completely useless.

“We got to get him out of here,” David says as he walks up to them.

There’s a shriek from behind them and they both duck as a flying monkey tries to attack. Emma takes out her gun and aims it toward the animal, but she gets distracted when Gold gets up and runs in the opposite direction.

“Gold!”

David swings the sword he brought with him and knocks the monkey down on the ground. “I’ll hold it off! Go!”

She runs in the direction he’s gone, but she quickly loses sight of him. Her head whips around the forest, but Gold is nowhere to be found. She slows to a walk and lets out a huff, it’s not like he got that much of a head start, he can’t have gotten far.

There’s a twig that breaks and her head snaps to the right.

“Gold?”

“Emma!”

Her brow goes together when she sees Neal running up to her.

“Neal? What the hell are you doing here?”

He gives her a smirk. “You expect me to stay in bed while you’re out here by yourself?”

She rolls her eyes. “And I’m guessing Hook let you just walk out?”

Neal raises his eyebrows. “So he’s back to Hook, now?”

She looks down at her feet, brushes her hair away from her shoulder and ignores his question. “I saw your dad, he’s alive, for sure.” His jaw clenches but he doesn’t say anything, so she takes a step forward. “Neal, what aren’t you telling me?”

He lets out a breath and shakes his head. “You want to waste time arguing with me, or do you want to try and finish all of this?”

She looks him over, his body is tense and he looks even paler than he did in the hospital, but she knows the only way he’s going to go back is if she drags him there.

“Fine. Let’s go.”

They walk in silence for a long while, there’s no sign of Gold anywhere and she’s starting to think that maybe the Wicked Witch was able to get him back after his escape.

After about ten minutes of no talking, Neal finally lets out a sigh. “So, New York, huh?”

She smiles. “I like the pizza.”

“Did Henry like it?”

“He loves pizza.”

Neal chuckles. “I meant living there in the city.”

“Oh, yeah. Finally had time to do all the things we normally couldn’t.”

“Like what?”

Shrugging, she continues to look around as she answers, “Go to the park, see a movie, go to the zoo, just do nothing. Two weeks ago we were playing video games and eating fruit roll ups.”

“With Hook?”

Taking a deep breath, she puts her hands inside of her pockets. “What do you want me to say, Neal?”

“Whatever you want, Emma. You think I didn’t have a clue as to what might happen between you two when I told him to go with you? It’s not like we were… or you even remembered…” He shakes his head. “Was it serious?”

Deciding to get it over with, she lifts her left hand to show him the engagement ring.

“He proposed?” She just looks over to see his eyes wide. “Wow.”

Her eyes roll. “I’m engaged to Captain Hook, go ahead and laugh.”

He does but waves her off. “I was engaged to a minion of my evil grandfather, Peter Pan. So I know what you’re saying.”

They both exchange a laugh as they continue to walk through the forest. It’s times like these she remembers why she fell in love with Neal Cassidy, he always was easy to talk too, and they fell into sort of a banter. Not the same banter she shares with Killian, but almost like a sibling banter. She sees that now, but back then, he was the only person that showed genuine care, so she thought it was true love.

“How is he with Henry?”

She gives him a sad smile. “They are great together. Sometimes I swear it’s me against the both of them. Henry was the one to actually meet him first. They would just always hang out, which turned into the three of us hanging out. We didn’t get together until about six months into New York.” He looks at her in surprise and she gives him a nod. “It’s true. He was just a friend.”

He’s quiet for a second before he asks in a low voice, “Does he call him dad?”

“No,” she answers quickly. “When he introduces him to people, he calls him his step dad, but, he’s still Killian.”

She leaves out the part where Henry asked her if he could call Killian ‘dad’ after they get married because he’s already dealing with too much pain.

“Do you love him?”

With a small smile, she nods. “Yeah, I do.”

“Well, I hope it works out.”

Her eyes snap over to him, voice dripping with disbelief. “Really?”

“Yeah. Hook isn’t really a bad guy, Emma, and he loves you. I knew that before you all left Storybrooke. I care about you, I always will, and I just want you to be happy… even if isn’t with me.”

His voice goes soft at the end and it hurts her a little. No matter what happened to them in the past, she never wanted to cause him pain.

“Wait, what did you mean you knew that before?”

He looks over at her and shrugs. “Before you all left, before we even knew that Pan was in Henry… he told me that he was going to back off.”

She stops walking and turns to him. “He _what_?”

“He said he was doing it for Henry, let his parents have a fair shot.”

Her fists clench inside of her pockets, all this time she’s believed that Killian was the one that would never abandon her, but he was planning on leaving her a year and a half ago. Her body starts to shake and she can feel her magic edging on the tips of her fingers.

“Em, what’s wrong?”

There’s a loud crack that echoes through the trees right before a large branch falls to the ground.

“What the hell was that?” Neal calls out.

Calming herself down so that she doesn’t wreck the whole forest, she clasps her hands together and mumbles, “My magic.”

“Your magic?” He asks in an almost horrified huff. “I thought you didn’t know how to use it?”

“I don’t,” she sighs. “It’s just I’m having trouble controlling it right now.”

“Why?”

Her eyes squeeze shut, because once again she’s let her emotions get the best of her and her magic has gone out of control, all due to the little person that is currently growing inside of her.

Knowing that he won’t let this go, she turns to him. “I have to tell you something, but you have to promise me you’ll keep it to yourself.”

He gives her a skeptical look before he agrees and she takes a deep breath. She doesn’t know why she’s telling him this, but she feels she owes it to him to hear it from her before it gets out and someone else tells him.

“I’m pregnant.”

His jaw drops and his eyes go wide. She’s never seen him looked so shocked in his life and she suddenly wonders if this is how he would have looked if she had been able to tell him when she was pregnant with Henry.

“You’re…” he trails off and she just nods. His mouth opens and closes for a couple seconds before he shakes his head. “Wow. What does Hook think?” She winces and he immediately takes a step forward, his face hard. “You _have_ to tell him, Emma! You can’t keep something like this from him! He deserves to know!”

She instantly becomes defensive and shoves him back with a growl, “I know that! I’m going to tell him, I just haven’t yet.”

“Are you sure about that?”

Her jaw locks as she stares at him “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

Shrugging, he shakes his head. “You didn’t tell me.”

“Because I had no idea where you were!” she cries out. “You left me to go to prison for _your_ crime, did you forget about that? Who the hell are you to say _anything_...”

He takes a step back and runs his hand through his hair. “Yes, alright, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean…” he lets out a frustrated growl. “That was my own personal thing there.”

She relaxes a little, but she can still feel the anger coursing through her as they start to walk again.

“How far along are you?”

She puts her hands back in her pockets and tries not sound annoyed, “Eight weeks, I think. I found out the night before we left New York. I was going to tell him earlier, but then…”

“I came back,” he finishes for her.

“Only Regina and my mother know, and that’s because I sort of let it slip out. Now, Mary Margaret is going crazy with making sure I’m taken care of. She even got this midwife to help me... Zelena…”

He starts to chuckle but it turns into a groan. Emma’s head snaps over to see him hunch over in pain before he cries out.

“Ah!”

“Neal!”

He falls to his knees and curls into a ball on the ground while he yells out in agony. She watches in horror as his face contorts from his own, to Gold’s, then back to his own.

“Neal, what did you do?”

Kneeling in front of him, she continues to watch with tears in her eyes.

“Ah!” he cries out and she takes him into her arms. “It was the only way! Ah ah! I had to, Emma. I had to get back to you and Henry!”

“He said there was no room, he meant you!”

Neal continues to contort in her arms and she’s finding it hard to hold onto him. His screams ring through the empty forest and the tears finally start running down her face.

“I need you to help me, Emma,” he breathes out. “Use your magic… separate me and my father.”

“Will that work?”

He swallows and tries to hold back another yell of pain.

“I’ll die,” She starts to shake her head but he stops her. “You need my dad more than me to figure out who the witch is… to save the town. You need to do this!”

She continues to shake her head. “I’ve never done anything like that before… not that big!”

“Do it!” he groans out. “Do it to save Henry and… and… and your unborn baby! Do it, please!”

She starts to sob as she holds Neal tighter in her arms. She doesn’t want to separate them, but she knows she has too. Gold is their only hope in figuring out who the Wicked Witch is and defeating her. For the second time in her life, she’s going to watch Neal die.

After she’s placed him softly on the ground, she puts her hands over him and squeezes her eyes shut. The magic tingles her skin and before she knows what’s happening, a bright light shines and she opens her eyes just in time to see Gold pull out of Neal’s body.

Emma crawls over and pulls Neal into her arms. “Neal! Neal, are you okay?”

“What have you done?” Gold growls.

“It’s okay, papa,” Neal gasps out. “I told her to.”

Gold’s face crumbles into despair. “But why?”

“So you can tell her who the witch is so you can defeat her.”

“Zelena.”

Her head snaps up over to Gold. “What?”

He repeats her name again and her heart stops. The woman that has been helping her through her pregnancy, who has been near her and her family multiple times in the past week, is the Wicked Witch that brought them all back.

“She’s the witch? What does she want?”

Gold crawls over to Neal and places his hands on his son’s arms. “What she doesn’t have.”

Neal starts to breath heavier and she looks down at him, he doesn’t seem to have much time left.

Tears clouding her vision, she looks up at Gold, “There has to be some way you can save him, right?”

Neal shakes his head. “It’s too late, Emma.”

“Just hang in there, please,” she cries. “You never even had a chance to see Henry… for him to remember you.”

A tear runs down Neal’s face. “It’s okay, he doesn’t have to. He just needs to know that, in the end, I was a good father.” He reaches into his coat pocket and takes out the necklace she gave him back when they were first reunited. “I saved this for you,” He places the necklace in her hand. “Go find Tallahassee with Killian. Raise Henry and your child… and…”

“Neal,” she sobs out and holds him tighter.

His hand moves up to touch her jaw. “I’ll be watching over you guys from somewhere. Promise me… just prom… promise me you’ll be happy.”

She continues to cry while she nods her head. “I promise… I promise.”

“No,” Gold growls and moves closer. “No, no. I can fix this.”

He moves his hands over Neal’s body, but is stopped.

“No, you can’t!” Neal gasps out. “You can’t. Thank you, papa, for showing me what it is to make a true sacrifice. It’s about saving the ones that you love.”

She puts her head down into his hair and sobs. It’s all too much, she’s having flashbacks of Graham in her arms, now Neal, two men she let into her life… one is gone and the other is about to be.

“No,” Gold cries. “I don’t want to let you go.”

Her arms hold him tighter and she wishes there is something she can do, but she knows even with all the magic in Storybrooke, it’s not possible.

“I love you, son,” Gold chokes out.

“I… I love you, papa.”

Neal takes one last gasp before his body sags in her arms. She watches in disbelief as his eyes close before Gold collapses on top of him in a fit of sobs.

Neal Cassidy is dead.

* * *

* * *

Killian walks toward the park at a slow pace. His heart is heavy and he’s trying his best to stay calm.

Bae is dead.

He tries to picture the man that left the hospital, the man he _let_ leave the hospital, but all he can see is the boy on his ship, smiling and laughing.

It’s all his fault.

If he would have just made him stay, not let him leave, Bae might still be alive.

_I’m sorry, Milah, I’ve failed again._

His heart is breaking, but he has to stay strong, for Emma and Henry. They’ve lost someone very important to them and they are the only ones that matter.

He sees her standing by the water staring at Henry across the way. Her posture is tense, but her face is blank. When he walks up, he doesn’t hesitate to pull her into his arms the second he approaches her. He tries to tell himself that it’s to comfort her, but he knows deep down it’s for his own benefit.

Her arms wrap around him lightly but her body is still stiff as he whispers, “I’m so sorry, love.”

She doesn’t say anything, but allows him to continue to hold her. He waits for her to relax in his arms like she always does, but it never comes. When he pulls back, she keeps her eyes down. He lifts his hand and puts his finger under her chin to raise her face up.

He has to hold back his gasp at what he sees. There’s only a hint of sorrow, with a touch of anger, but the rest is pure emptiness. Almost like she’s come to terms with something that makes her empty inside.

The last time he remembers seeing that look is when Henry was taken by Pan.

“Emma…”

“Zelena is the Wicked Witch.”

He takes a step back. “Zelena?! The lass that’s been helping your mother?” She flinches but nods. “How did you—”

“Neal brought Gold back when they were in the Enchanted Forest.”

His jaw locks, he suspected that’s what Bae had done, but to actually hear the words only made him angry. What was he thinking by invoking dark magic like that?

“What happened?”

She takes a step back and wraps her arms around herself. It hurts him because she’s holding in her pain instead of letting him help.

“He brought him back to…” her voice trails off.

She doesn’t need to finish because Killian knows exactly why Bae brought his father back. So that he could see Emma and Henry again.

Shaking her head, she continues. “But the sacrifice was his life. So Gold absorbed Neal into him so that he wouldn’t die. That’s why his memories were only partial, because he was inside of Gold.” He runs his hand through his hair as he listens to her. “He made me separate them and wouldn’t let Gold take him back in. It was too much for the both of them, I think… he died right after.”

“Where’s the Crocodile now?”

She takes a deep breath and brushes a piece of hair away from her face. “Zelena has his dagger, she summoned him.”

“The Wicked Witch has the Dark One’s dagger?! What the bloody hell happened back there?”

“I don’t know. All I know is that we have a twelve-year-old boy that just lost his father and he doesn’t even _remember_ him.” He looks over to see Henry taking a picture of a tree next to the lake and his heart breaks even more. “What are we going to tell him?”

Her voice cracks and he takes a step forward to pull her back into his arms. She’s still stiff, but his hook rubs up and down her back while he kisses the top of her head. “The truth, it’s all we can do.”

“Killian, he doesn’t remember him. How am I going--”

“He thinks you’re keeping something from him.”

She pulls back. “What?”

“He told me last night while you were getting dinner. He can tell something isn’t right, Swan. He’s a smart lad and I think we’ve been too consumed in what’s going on to realize how sloppy we’ve been around him.” She presses the heels of her palms against her eyes and lets out a huff. “I think if we try to tell him anymore lies, he’s going to call us on them.”

Her eyes are glassy when she opens them but he can still see the emptiness that’s inside. Before she says anything, she reaches to his hook and clicks it out of place. He sucks in a breath as he watches her put it inside of her jacket before she reaches in his pocket and pulls out the prosthetic. It’s feels so natural, so familiar, back in New York she used to help him with his brace all the time without batting an eyelash, now she’s doing the same with his hook.

“He deserves to know the truth.” He’s not sure if she’s trying to convince him or herself. “We have to tell him.”

“Aye, but how are _you_?”

Her lips press together and he can tell in that instant that her walls are back up in full force. She’s not going to let him in and it hurts.

“Let’s go.”

With a sigh, he follows her across the short bridge. Their steps are slow, he can tell they are both trying to put this off as long as possible, but it has to be done.

When he hears them, Henry turns with a big smile appears on his face.

“Mom! Killian! It was _awesome_!” He runs up to them. “We should take more fishing trips when we get back to New York. Do you think that’s possible?”

Killian gives him a small smile. “We’ll see.”

Henry eyes them both before his brow goes together. “What’s wrong?”

Emma takes a deep breath and puts her arm around his shoulders.

“Come here, kid,” she motions with her head and takes them over to a bench.

The boy sits in the middle of them on the bench while Killian puts his arm around him and she takes his hands into hers.

“Remember what I said to you last night, lad?” Henry’s eyes move over to his mother frantically before he looks back at Killian and nods. “Well, you were right. Your mother and I haven’t been completely forthright with you about this case…”

She moves closer and he can see she’s struggling to hold it together. “The reason we came here is because… someone was in trouble, and the person who needed help was not a client. It was your father.”

Henry’s head snaps over to her and his jaw drops. “This is about my dad?”

“Aye,” Killian breathes out. “Some bad people wanted to hurt him.”

He looks between them both with frantic eyes. “Is he okay? Did you find him?”

Leaning forward, he presses his lips to the boy’s temple while she answers.

“I found him… but I was too late,” her voice cracks and he can see the tears in her eyes. “He’s gone, Henry. He was a good man, and he would have been a great father. There’s one thing I need you to know about him…”

She trails off and her eyes move up to his. He tightens his arm around Henry’s shoulder and gives her a slight nod.

Looking back down at their son, she whispers, “He was a hero.”

Henry’s face crumbles into sorrow and Killian kisses his head again while tears prick the back of his eyes.

_Oh, Bae._

The lad looks at the both of them and asks, “What happened to the person who did it?”

She closes her eyes and wipes her cheeks, her voice filled with regret, “They got away.”

Henry sags, so Killian pulls him close. “But your mother _will_ find them, Henry, I can promise you that.”

* * *

Henry is quiet the entire ride back to the Inn. Killian expects him to ask questions, but he’s completely silent. It’s like a knife in his gut every time he hears the soft sniffles from the backseat because he knows there’s nothing he can do. When they pull up, Regina is waiting outside. Her eyes stay on Henry in the backseat and he sees how badly she wants to run to him.

“Hello Madam Mayor,” Henry mumbles when they approach her.

“Hello, Henry,” she whispers. Her hands are fisted as her sides and she’s squirming back and forth. “I heard about what happened. I just wanted to tell you how incredibly sorry I am.”

Killian looks over to see Henry’s chin start to quiver. Regina takes a step forward, her restrain to hold back breaking, but stops when Henry turns and wraps himself around Emma. Tears shine in the Queen’s eyes as she watches her son refuse her comfort.

Emma gives Regina a sorrowful look before she kisses the top of Henry’s head.

“What do you say, lad?” he whispers.

Henry pulls back from Emma and wipes his face. “Thank you. I just wish… I wish I could have known him.”

Regina’s face twitches and he can see her physically holding back her tears. He feels for the woman, he truly does, if the situation were reversed, he’s not sure he would be able to be as strong as she is.

“Yes, well, I’m sure he would have been very proud of you.”

A small smile forms on the Henry’s lips as he gives her a nod before Regina clears her throat and crosses her arms in front of her. “I’ll let you go, but if you need anything, please call.”

Regina turns to walk away.

“Madam Mayor?” Henry calls out.

She stops and turns back to him with a hopeful look on her face. “Yes?”

“Um, do you mind if we continue our tour some other time?” He asks in a soft voice. “Tomorrow I’d just really like to spend with my step dad.”

Regina’s jaw goes stiff and her eyes flicker over to Killian before she looks back at the boy. He looks to Emma, who gives him a sad smile, before he reaches out to rub the boy’s back.

“Of course,” Regina mumbles.

Emma mouths to Regina they will talk later before they say their goodbyes and head into the Inn.

“You okay, kid?”

Henry takes his coat off and shrugs his shoulders.

“It’s just… I wish I could hear something about him that doesn’t make it sound like it’s made up so I like this guy.”

Killian looks over to see she’s losing her fight to stay calm. Their boy is upset and he wants to know about his father and it seems she doesn’t know what to do. Henry turns and walks into the bathroom before either one of them can respond. She lets out a sigh and runs her hands through her hair.

“Perhaps you should try talking to the boy, Swan.”

“As far as he is concerned, I haven’t seen Neal since he left me in jail,” she hisses in a whisper. “So anything I’d tell him about his dad being a hero will sound like I’m making it up to get him to feel better.”

Taking off his jacket, he suggests, “Then, perhaps I can talk to him.” She looks up at him with her brow together and he shrugs. “I knew Bae as a boy. Perhaps Henry would like to hear what his father was like when he was his age.”

Her mouth drops open and she looks at him in wonder. “You’d really do that?”

“Does that surprise you?” When she doesn’t answer, he runs his hand over his face and shakes his head. “Swan, do you think I like seeing our boy like this any more than you do?” Her shoulders sag and she lets out what sounds like a sigh of relief as he takes a step to her. “I’m here for you too, Emma. You just have to let me in.”

She stares at him for a couple seconds before her eyes move down to the floor. “I think we should just concentrate on what Henry needs right now.”

Clenching his jaw, he swallows his anger. Whenever he thinks he’s getting somewhere with her, something happens and her walls go slamming back up.

One step forward, two steps back.

“He’s probably going to be extra clingy with you the next couple days,” she whispers. “You’re the only thing he has right now.”

He pulls his flask out of his back pocket and takes a sip. The rum burns his throat as he swallows but he nods. Guilt washes over him like rain, all this time, Henry has been _his_ son, for the past year, _he’s_ been the one there, wiping tears, dealing with attitude, sharing in happy times, it’s more than fine for him to comfort the boy, but Bae is dead. He’s never going to know what it’s like to hold Henry in his arms again, or listen to him laugh. He doesn’t want to replace Bae, but he can’t fight the strong urge inside of him to continue to be the father the boy sees him as.

“I’ll take him out tomorrow, talk to him about his father, could help him make peace with Bae’s passing,” he looks down at the ground. “And me.”

They are silent for a couple seconds before she clears her throat.

“I’m sorry, Killian. Sometimes I forget how much you cared about Neal, too.”

“Aye.”

He takes another pull from his flask before he places it on the table and pushes down his own feelings so that he can concentrate on helping Henry. They are silent until the lad finally comes out of the bathroom dressed in his pajamas.

They both watch as he moves around the room solemnly, before he sits down on the edge of the bed.

“You know,” she calls out. “I’m hungry. I think I’m going to run down to get something to eat. You want some ice cream?”

Henry shakes his head and her shoulders sag. He watches as she puts her hands in her pockets and her brow go together before she pulls out a chain with a pendant on the end and smiles down at it.

“What’s that?” Henry asks.

She looks up at Killian and smiles before she walks over to the boy and holds it in front of him.

“Something your father gave me a very long time ago.”

He walks up to see a pendant with a swan carved into the middle. Henry stares in wonder before she gives it to him.

“You want to hear about it?”

Staring at the pendant with wide eyes, their son nods.

Killian looks over a her and they exchange a smile. She may not be able to tell him things about Bae from the present, but she can share memories from their past.

“You two talk,” he says softly. “I’ll go down and fetch us something from Granny’s.”

She gives him a thankful look before he leans down and kisses Henry’s forehead. Without thinking, he leans over and presses his lips to her temple.

“I’ll be back soon, love.”

* * *

Emma’s pulling away from him. She hasn’t come right out and said it, but he can tell she is. It’s been two days since Bae’s passing and with each day, she sinks further and further into herself. Killian tries to talk to her, but whenever they are alone, all she wants to talk about is getting Zelena and making her pay.

He knows it’s getting to her, earlier that morning she dropped her keys on the ground and started to cry. But when he tried to comfort her, she refused and wiped her tears away.

He wants nothing more than for some time alone with her, make sure she’s properly grieving for the man she once loved, but it’s like she predicted. Henry sticks to him on a constant basis. Wherever he goes, the boy wants to follow, and if he walks out of the room, he needs reassurance that Killian will return.

The night after Bae’s passing, he took Henry down to the beach to teach him how to navigate with the stars and told the boy he knew his father. Henry was in complete shock.

“You knew my dad?”

“Aye,” Killian told him. “Long before you were born.”

“Is that why you and mom were fighting when we first got here?”

Without even realizing it, he and Emma were given an opportunity to explain why things may seem strained between them.

“I wasn’t aware of the connection until your mother’s case came up.”

After that, Henry clung to every word he said, so eager to know about the father he lost. When Killian shared the news with her, she just nodded.

“My parents are going to meet us here then follow to the cemetery,” she whispers as she climbs into bed next to him. “Then Granny is going to have the wake at the diner.”

He reaches up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “Any news on Zelena?”

Since Henry refuses to leave his side, the only time he gets updates on their search is when they are lying in bed together, before she turns and closes herself off to him, of course.

“No,” she says with a sigh. “I’ve wanted to go back and search the farm, but Regina doesn’t think that’s smart. We know who she is now so there’s no need for her to hide.”

His hand rubs over his face before he places it behind his head. “I hate to say it, but I agree with her. I don’t think a good threatening, especially on her grounds, is going to stop her.”

“She’ll get more than a threatening when I find her.”

Her voice is so hard and hollow, it makes his chest hurt. He turns his body on its side so that he’s facing her.

“I know you’re hurting, Swan, but there are better ways to grieve Baelfire’s death than letting anger overcome you.”

He watches as she brings her hands up so that her fingers can twirl the ring on her finger. “I’ll stick with anger. At least, until I’ve dealt with Zelena.”

Reaching out, he stops her. “Take it from me, vengeance isn’t the thing that’s going to make you feel better.”

She pulls away from him and turns on her side. He knows then she’s pushing him away. “It’ll make this town safer.”

With a sigh, he turns and lies down on his back. “Any idea why she was so interested in getting close to your mother and the little Prince?”

He actually feels her body go stiff next to him.

“No.”

He eyes her for a few seconds, before he mumbles, “What are you keeping from me?”

“Nothing,” she answers quickly.

“Emma…”

“Neal said something interesting to me.”

He turns his head to look at her fully as she twists to face him, the moon shining through the windows just enough for him to see her face. He knows she’s actively changing the subject and even though it kills him, he lets her. They have more important things to worry about.

“Aye?”

She licks her lips but keeps her eyes down.

“He told me before we left you said you were going to ‘back off’ and give me and him a fair shot for the sake of Henry.” He swallows the lump in his throat but before he can respond, she finally looks up at him. “Were you going to leave?”

“No.”

“Then what were you going to do?”

He looks back and forth between her eyes for a few moments before he answers. “Wait.”

Emma stares at him for what seems like eternity before she finally moves over and presses her lips against his own, they are warm and soft, just like he remembers. His hand makes its way to the back of her head as her fingers trace his jawline before they move down his bare chest. He sucks in a breath when she brushes over his nipple and pulls back.

His eyes search her own, was this just another attempt to ease her ache? But that’s not what’s there, all he can see is lust with a mixture of what he thinks may be love. He can feel her breath on his lips and when her nails scratch his stomach he moves. His lips press firmly back onto hers before he flips them so he’s lying on top of her. He rips her flannel top open, causing buttons to fly everywhere while her hands work frantically to pull his boxers down. Seconds later, he’s sliding into her and kissing her moan away.

Once he’s fully inside, he stops and rests his forehead against her own. No matter how many times they’ve been together, he’ll never get over how she feels around him. So soft and warm, so… wonderful.

It’s not until she groans that he realizes he hasn’t moved yet. He pulls back his hips and slides back into her. She whimpers against his mouth and he grips the sheets next to her head. He makes love to her slowly, with every thrust, every touch, he tries to convey his feelings to her, tries once again to tell her how much he loves her without actually saying the words. Her hands grip his hips before rubbing up his back and into his hair.

He kisses down her jaw until he meets the curve in her neck. Instead of nipping it like he always does, he lays soft kisses and lets his lips drag across her skin.

“Killian,” she whimpers and he can tell she’s close.

She wraps her legs tighter around his waist before she pulls him back to her lips. He thinks he feels her mumble something but before he can register what she’s saying, she convulses around him. His eyes roll into the back of his head and he tries to hold off, but he can’t, she feels too good, too amazing and it’s been too long. He quickly follows her before he collapses onto her chest. Her heart is pounding in his ears and he can feel her legs shaking around him.

When he lifts to look at her, there are tears in her eyes. She opens her mouth, but because he’s terrified at what she’s about to say, he reaches up and brushes his thumb over her bottom lip.

“I love you, Emma,” he whispers.

He kisses her before she can respond, or not respond, he’s not sure. All he knows is kissing her is better than a blank stare.

* * *

* * *

Emma doesn’t remember getting ready for the funeral. Since the moment she woke up, her brain has been on autopilot. Luckily, Killian helps Henry get dressed and all she has to worry about is keeping herself together long enough so that she doesn’t break down in front of their son.

Every time she closes her eyes, all she sees is Neal dying and it eats at her. There had to have been something more she could have done to save him. If only she knew more of her magic…

Now Henry is grieving over the loss of his father he has no memories of.

The drive to the cemetery is short, but they are there for twenties minutes before they can start because just about the whole town shows up. Henry stays glued to her and Killian’s side without saying much.

Her breath catches when they start to lower the casket and she feels Killian touch the small of her back. For a brief second, she allows him to comfort her and sags back into his body. His lips brush against her temple and it takes all the energy she has not to burst into tears.

Neal is really gone this time, and he won’t be coming back.

When the casket is lowered, Killian is the first to take a step up. She watches as he takes hold of the shovel and tosses dirt down onto the casket. His face is filled with anguish and pain, and suddenly, she hears Neal’s voice in her head.

_“Go find Tallahassee with Killian. Raise Henry and your child.”_

His dying wish was for them to be happy together, but all she can see is Killian dying just like him.

They all leave, one way or another.

David goes next, followed by her mother, then Regina. Belle is sobbing as she takes her turn and jams the shovel back in the dirt when she’s done. One by one each person in the town tosses dirt onto Neal’s casket but Emma keeps her eyes on the tombstone.

**Beloved Son  
Neal Cassidy**

There wasn’t even a question as to what name they would put on there when it was picked out. Henry knew him as Neal, and that’s what would be immortalized. When the last person puts the shovel down, she taps Henry on the shoulder. He looks up at her and she gives a nod for him to go. A stuttering breath leaves her chest as he walks forward and Killian pulls her back to him. She grips his forearm tightly and tries to draw strength from him.

With the shovel dangling over the casket, Henry hesitates. Her hand tightens on Killian’s arm and he kisses the back of her head while they watch their son say a silent goodbye to the father he doesn’t remember. When he’s finished, she walks up to him and runs her hand over his face. Henry gives her a small smile and she looks down to see the pendant she gave him the night Neal died. Her fingers brush over it for a quick second before she puts her arm around him and turns to where Killian is already waiting, he takes Henry and pulls him back while she steps to the shovel.

All eyes are on her and even if she wanted to break down, she couldn’t. The shovel feels light until she picks up some dirt, then it feels like the heaviest thing she’s ever attempted to lift, and she knows once the dirt is gone, it’s over.

Staring down at the casket, she finally allows herself to feel the sorrow of Neal’s death.

She loved him, a long time ago, and part of her always will love him. He gave her Henry, who in turn reunited her with her family.

Her life, and everything it is now and what it will be in the future, is because of the love they once shared, and she will never forget that.

She turns her wrist and the dirt falls down.

_Goodbye, Neal._

* * *

Emma sits down at the table her family is at next to Killian with her sauerkraut and ham. She’s been craving it for the past three days and when Granny told her she could cook it up on the stove, she all but kissed the old woman.

“What the bloody hell is that?!” Killian asks with a look of disgust.

“It’s sauerkraut and ham,” she tells him. “Want to try some?”

His nose scrunches and he shakes his head while Henry giggles.

She rolls her eyes. “Can you hand me the salt?”

He hands it to her and watches in horror as she sprinkles an obscene amount on her food.

“Wow, Emma,” David chuckles. “Do you want some food with your salt?”

Her cheeks tint and Snow giggles.

“I remember craving salt when I was…” Her eyes go wide as she stares at her mother who stops talking. Snow looks over at Killian and gives a big smile. “Ugh, last week. I wanted salt on everything.”

David’s brow goes together. “When did you want salt on everything?”

“Oh look it's Regina!” Snow calls out as the woman walks up to their table with Robin next to her. “Hello, Regina. How are you?”

Killian puts his arm around her shoulders and leans in to whisper in her ear. “Is there a reason your mother is acting strangely?”

Her breath hitches when she feels his lips brush against the shell of her ear and she’s suddenly hit with flashes of the night before. The way he felt on top of her, his pants and moans against her flesh, but also how scared she was to lose him. She mumbled how much she loved him while he kissed her, too scared to say it louder, then when they were done, he told her he loved her and her heart started to race. When he went to the bathroom to clean up, she sat there chewing her lip while she debated on telling him that she’s pregnant. But when he came back to bed, she couldn’t find the courage, so she just snuggled into his chest and went to sleep.

She dreamed of three caskets. Graham’s, Neal’s, and Killian’s.

A shiver runs down her spine and she swallows. She’s going to tell him about the pregnancy after everything calms down. She refuses to have him… before he ever knows about his child. He deserves better than that.

She lets out a nervous chuckle and shakes her head. “I think we’re all just acting strangely today.”

He looks her over for a quick second before he nods and turns back to the conversations.

“Um, Henry, this is a friend of mine, his name is Robin.”

He gives the man a small smile before he sticks his hand out for a handshake.

“Very nice to meet you, Henry,” Robin says with a smile. “That’s quite a handshake you’ve got there.”

The tips of Henry’s ears turn pink. “My mom taught me that it’s always polite to give a handshake.” Regina sucks in a breath because that’s something she taught him, but because of his cursed memories, he believes it was Emma. “And my step dad says it’s good form.”

Tears prick her eyes when she hears Henry call Killian his step dad. It’s not the first time, but after everything that has happened, it really hits her. Without thinking, she moves her hand to Killian’s thigh and squeezes it.

He gives her a smile before takes a sip of his beer and nods. “Right you are, lad.”

They all exchange a chuckle as Regina and Robin sit down with them, and Emma smiles when Henry finally starts to talk. He’s been quiet most of the day, understandably so, but until she can tell him the truth about what happened with his father, she has to just let him.

She feels almost guilty for being relieved for Regina’s presence, but it helps. With her there, Henry’s distracted and she doesn’t have to worry about filling the conversation with lies.

Regina hangs on to the boy’s words and she’s overcome with another wave of sorrow. Neal is never going to hear about Henry’s day ever again. He was back for only a couple hours before he died. There’s no guarantees in this world, especially in Storybrooke where there is a Wicked Witch trying to kill them all.

Oh god, she has to tell Killian about the baby today. It’s the right thing to do.

“Swan, what’s wrong?”

She turns her head to see him staring at her with concern in his eyes. Her chest starts to heave before she leans over and puts her lips on his. She can feel his confusion, but he responds.

There’s a throat clearing that causes them to pull apart and she blushes when she sees her father glaring at her.

Her cheeks tint as she mumbles, “Sorry.”

David’s eyes move to Killian and she has to bite back her laugh when he presses his lips together and grins at her father.

“Don’t push it, Pirate,” David mumbles so that Henry couldn’t hear him.

Snow smacks her husband in the arm while Killian snorts. Emma isn’t blind to the new friendship that’s formed between her father and him, it’s almost like they came to an understanding since they’ve been back, but she’s been so caught up she hasn’t had time to ask him about it.

Another item on the long list of things they need to talk about.

She finishes her food and drinks the rest of her water. She lets out a huff when her bladder starts to scream at her, it’ll be the third time she’s gone to the bathroom since they got to the diner.

Pregnancy is fun.

_Pregnancy, fuck._

“Hey,” she whispers in Killian’s ear. “We need to talk.”

He sighs and places his glass back down on the table.

“I’ve found when a woman says that, I’m rarely in for pleasant conversation.”

Her lips press together and she tries to hide her smile. There’s a sparkle in his eye and it tells her he knows what he’s done by repeating those words to her before she smacks him on the arm making him chuckle.

“Tonight.”

She shakes her head. “No, after this.”

His eyes look back and forth between hers and he nods. “Aye, love, after this.”

She gives him a peck on the cheek before she gets up and goes to the bathroom. Her heart is pounding in her chest and she tries not to think about the fact that in a couple hours, she’s going to tell him she’s pregnant. Once that’s out of her mind, the flashes of both Neal and Graham come. She sucks in a breath and squeezes her eyes shut.

Her hormones are all over the place and she can barely control her emotions. When she’s alone, she’s panicking about telling Killian and about losing him. But when she’s with him, she’s so consumed by her feelings for him that it’s like she has no worries in the world.

It’s all very confusing.

When she walks out of the bathroom, Henry comes running up to her.

“Mom! Regina said she’s going to take Robin and his son to the park, can I go with them?”

Her jaw drops and she feels like her son may have taken on some of her mood swings. Fifteen minutes ago, he refused an ice cream sundae when Killian offered him one, now he wants to go to the park. She looks up to see Regina staring at them with a hopeful look in her eyes. It seems that even without his memories, Henry can’t seem to stay away from Regina and it makes Emma proud because no matter what curse is put on him, his heart knows the truth.

“Sure thing, kid. Make sure you say goodbye to Killian, okay?”

Henry nods and gives her a hug before he runs over to his stepfather. She sucks in a breath when she sees him sitting in a booth with her little brother on his lap. The baby is giggling happily as he slaps his chubby little thighs while Killian talks to Belle, his prosthetic on Leo’s stomach while his right hand fiddles with the rings on his fingers.

He looks so relaxed, so calm, so… natural. Emma suddenly gets a vision of him holding their baby the same way. When Henry runs up, Killian gives him a smile before he moves out of the booth, taking her little brother and turning him around in his arms. He brings the baby to his chest and she has to bite back a giggle when Leo grabs onto his necklace and starts to yank it forward while shrieking in joy.

Killian looks down at Leo and both he and Henry laugh when the baby starts to giggle when their son tickles his stomach. Henry speaks to his stepfather, and when he looks up at her, she gives him a reassuring smile before he wraps his free arm around Henry and kisses the top of his head, watching as he runs off with Robin and Regina.

She continues to stare at Killian with her little brother and it makes her heart flutter. He bounces the baby his arms while he expertly removes his prosthetic and replaces it with his hook.

It really amazes her how he does it without thought when just weeks before, he didn’t even remember he had a hook.

He switches her brother over to his right arm and the baby’s eyes go wide when he sees the hook before he lets out a loud gurgle and tries to reach for it.

Her lips press together as she walks up to them. A small laugh escapes past her lips as Leo continues to try and grab his hook.

“You see this, Swan?” Killian asks with a smile. “I think the little Prince likes me.”

She nods her head. “I think he does.”

They both laugh as Leo grabs the loop on his hook and pulls it close. The baby cries out in celebration and wraps both hands around it before he starts yanking up and down, Killian holding his arm tightly so that the tip doesn't go anywhere near the baby’s body.

“Does the Captain have a new fan?” Snow asks with a smile as she walks up to them with her father.

“Aye, milady,” He answers. “Perhaps the he would fancy a spot on my crew?”

David grumbles and puts his beer down on the table. “I’ll take my son back, Hook.”

Emma rolls her eyes as her father leans in to take the baby. But when David tries to put his hands under Leo’s arms, he lets out a whine and moves closer to Killian.

Both men’s brows go together while Emma and Snow exchange a look. He tries again, but Leo whines louder and hides his head in Killian’s neck.

Her hand shoots up to cover her mouth while Snow giggles. Killian throws a cocky smirk to David who just glares at him.

Before anyone can say anything, there’s a loud crash from the front door. Leo pops his head up and he twists his body back to David as he starts to cry at the loud noise, holding out for his father.

Killian hands the baby over as Zelena saunters in with a grin on her face and the Dark One’s dagger in her hand. David gives Leo to Snow before he and Killian stand in front of them.

“My condolences. So sorry I’ve missed the funeral, but I could never pass up the wake. Oh, did I miss the speeches? Shall I make on? I mean, I am, after all, responsible.”

Emma leaps forward, but her mother seizes her arm.

“Emma, no,” she gasps out. “Too many people will get hurt.”

Snow’s eyes move down to her stomach before she looks back up at her.

“Listen to your mother,” Zelena calls out before she lifts the dagger. “Anyone who tries to interfere with my plan is going to have to deal with the Dark One!”

The Witch takes another step forward but Killian and David block her.

“Don’t come any closer!” David growls.

Zelena rolls her eyes. “Oh please!”

With a flick of the wrist, Killian and David are thrown to the side. They both jump up, but before they can move back to her, their feet stay planted on the ground.

“Now, for what I came for…”

Emma steps up in front of Snow and her brother and puts her hand up. “Stay back!”

Zelena lets out a loud cackle. “Do you think I’m here for your brother?”

Her brow goes together and she looks back at Snow quickly, who is holding her crying baby to her chest.

Zelena gives her a sick smile and looks down at her stomach. She goes stiff and fear courses through her. Her heart is pounding in her chest and tears are forming in her eyes. She knows in that moment, that whatever Zelena has planned, it has something to do with her being pregnant.

“Emma…” Snow whispers.

The Witch lets out another sickening laugh as she walks over to Killian and Emma’s whole body starts to shake.

“Still haven’t told the fiancé? That’s a shame really, since you told your dead lover and all.”

His head snaps up and he stops struggling. “What is she talking about, Swan?”

He looks at her in confusion and she feels a tear run down her face as Zelena grins and turns back to him.

“Do _you_ want to tell him? Or shall I?”

Her gaze stays locked on Zelena with a death glare, who gives another laugh as she walks back to the counter. She feels her mother grasp her hand from behind and she squeezes it tight because she knows her entire world is about to come crashing down.

Zelena grabs a glass of wine off the counter and holds in the air.

“Congratulations, Captain. You’re going to be a daddy!”


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! Look at me, updating a day early! I figured it might be best, with Jen being at NYCC tomorrow and the likely flailing we’ll all be doing, I didn’t want it to get lost in the shuffle. So here’s Chapter 23 :D Hope you like it!

** Chapter Twenty-Three **

There’s a collective gasp that rings out through the diner but it’s otherwise silent. The air is thick and she can feel everyone staring at her but her eyes are on Killian.

He blinks at Zelena, her grin seemingly growing wider as he lets the words sink in. She should have told him _weeks_ ago, now he’s found out because of the Wicked Witch.

Emma stays quiet as he squeezes his eyes shut under his furrowed brow before he raises his hand toward Zelena.

“You’re lying!”

She sucks in a breath because she doesn’t want this to happen here, he doesn’t want the baby, he doesn’t want _her_ and now everyone knows it.

Tears form in her eyes as Zelena giggles and puts the wine glass down. “Not quite how you pictured telling him, was it, Savior? Perhaps you should have taken my advice and told him sooner.”

His eyes snap back over to her and all she can do is breathe out his name, ready to beg him to give her a moment to at least explain, to make him try and stay.

“Emma?” He searches her face as he tries to move, almost falling in his attempt.

Her chin starts to quiver as she watches him take another pull at the magic that holds his feet before growling in frustration.

“Let me free, _witch_.” He hisses.

Zelena eyes him with amusement until his fist clenches and he lets out a strangled noise from the back of his throat.

The harshness and anger in his voice makes her flinch. She was prepared for his anger, but it still surprises her at how hurt she is over it. Part of her hoping that he might actually be hap—

“All in due time,” Zelena tells him with a smile. “It’s so nice of you to make up for what your parents took from me. It was such a nice little surprise...” She stops and smirks at Killian. “Well, a nice little surprise for you, too, Captain.”

Emma tries to take a step forward, but her mother’s grip on her wrist tightens, keeping her in place.

“What do you _want.”_

Zelena sighs and brushes something off of her shoulder. “I told you. I came to get what belongs to me.”

David begins his own fight against the magic while Snow tries to pull Emma away, begging her to move.

“Relax, dear, it will only take a second.” Before she can blink, the Witch is in front of her, leaning close to her face with hard look. “This might sting a little.”

Her right hand jams toward Emma’s stomach as her parents both yell out her name at the same time Killian hollers, “No!”

Before Zelena’s hand can make a connection, there’s a flash of white light and she goes flying back toward the counter. David and Killian are let go and they both move forward to stand protectively in front of the women.

“Are you okay?” her father asks, eyes moving over her as he puts a protective arm in front of Snow and Leo.

She moves to catch Zelena, ignoring David’s question, when Killian steps in front of her. His eyes are filled with fear and his jaw is clenched.

“I’m okay,” she whispers.

They all turn when Zelena growls before she pushes herself up off the ground, “You haven’t won, Savior! I _will_ get your baby!”

Through clenched teeth, Emma hisses, “Not today!”

Zelena lets out an angry yell before she vanishes in a cloud of green smoke. Emma sighs while her mother tries to calm Leo down, and her father turns back to her.

Eyes searching her over again, David asks, “Are you sure you’re okay?”

But she doesn’t answer him, because when she looks up, she sees Killian staring at her. Both her parent’s stop their fussing when they notice and the diner suddenly goes silent again. Their eyes are locked and she can feel the weight of her decision on her shoulders. He’s angry, extremely angry, she can’t remember if she’s ever seen him so angry.

Keeping his eyes on her, he growls, “Everyone out.” When no one moves, he turns back to the crowd in the diner and yells, “NOW!”

“Okay,” David calls out. “You heard the man. Everybody outside.”

There are no words spoken between them but they continue to stare while everyone files out of the diner. She wants to say she’s sorry, she wants to beg him to forgive her, to not leave, but all she can do is wait.

She doesn’t know how much time passes before he finally speaks, his voice dripping with anger, “How long have you known?”

Taking a deep breath, she tries to keep her voice from stuttering, “Since the last night in New York.”

His jaw clenches and he takes a step back to rub his hand over his face. “Before we got our memories back?”

“After.”

Pinching his brows together in confusion, he shakes his head, “When?”

“After you took David to the airport,” she explains. “He said something before he left that made me realize I had gone through all my symptoms before, I ran down to the grocery store and bought a test. Whale confirmed it when I went to see him.”

“This is what you’ve been keeping from me?” She looks to the ground and nods. “Who else knows, besides the Witch?”

She flinches, it was by pure accident that Zelena found out, be she doubts he’s going to care about that.

Her hands go together, fingers twirling the ring on her finger. “Just my mother and Regina. It kind of slipped out the first night we were here.”

He lets out a dry chuckle and she sees from the corner of her eye him move back and rest his hand and hook on a chair. “Did it _slip out_ with Bae, too?”

Licking her lips, she flinches and keeps her voice low, “No, I told him myself.”

They are both silent for a long time and the weight of her decision feels heavy on her shoulders. What was she thinking when she told Neal before Killian? She deserves to be left alone after what she did.

But it still terrifies her, she loves him so much… if she can only make him see how sorry she is--

“So you’re saying,” he starts, his voice hard and his eyes trained on the chair he’s leaning against, “you were more comfortable telling all these people before you told me?”

“It’s only thre—“

She jumps when there is a crash after he throws the chair to the ground.

“I don’t bloody care if it was only one!” he hollers. “They all knew _before_ me!”

She opens her mouth to argue that she planned on telling him when they talked later, but the bell above the door in the front rings and Regina comes running inside with her parents close behind.

“What the hell happened? Leroy is screaming all over town about Zelena.”

Killian takes a step back, his body is still stiff and she can tell he’s frustrated that they were interrupted, but there’s nothing either of them can do about it.

“Mom, dad,” Emma starts. “Is Leo okay?”

Snow nods. “He’s fine. Belle took him back to the loft for us.”

“Where’s Henry?” Killian asks roughly.

Regina eyes him before she answers, “Robin has him at the park with Roland. Now, what happened with Zelena?”

Emma moves back while her parents explain what happened, when they mention Zelena trying to do something to her stomach, Regina’s head snaps over.

“She tried to go after your baby?” Killian lets out a noise and Regina looks over at him. “Congratulations, by the way.”

His teeth chomp while he glares at her, but he doesn’t say anything. David takes a step toward them with his arms crossed.

“I’d actually like to talk about that…”

“Now is not the time,” Snow whispers.

David chuckles and puts his hands on his hips. “Excuse me if you’ve had time to process the fact that we’re going to have another grandchild.”

Regina rolls her eyes while her mother glares.

“She’s our _daughter_ , David! She asked me not to tell and I respected her wishes!”

Emma looks down at the ground in shame, she has been so wrapped up in her own feelings about her pregnancy that she never thought how asking other people to keep her secret would affect them… and the ones they were keeping it from.

“I understand that,” David says with a sigh. “But don’t you think it would have been better to say something sooner?”

“My thoughts exactly,” Killian hisses.

When she looks over at him, he loops his thumb through his belt and clenches his jaw while he stares at her. A shiver runs down her spine and she wraps her arms around her body, she can’t remember the last time she’s been so ashamed of herself… she was so selfish.

“Can we get back to the matter at hand here?” Regina calls out. “What does this witch want with your baby?”

Letting out a sigh, she runs her hands through her hair. “I don’t know what she wants. She said she wanted to ‘get what belongs to her’.”

“What the hell does that mean?” Regina asks.

Growling, Killian looks over to Regina, “Do you think if we knew that we’d be standing here?”

Regina takes a step forward, her face showing anger, but Snow steps up and interrupts her, “Whatever she meant, she tried to touch Emma’s stomach and was stopped by a white light.”

Regina lets out a gasp. “Your magic. It projected itself out to protect you.”

Before Emma can comment, she notices smoke coming from the kitchen. “Is something burning?”

They all turn to the counter before David rushes out, he comes back seconds later with Granny in tow.

“You all trying to burn down my diner now?”

Everyone stays silent as Granny walks behind the counter into the kitchen. There’s a loud groan before she comes barreling back out with a silver pan in her hands holding a black charred block in the middle and it’s smoking as she lets it drop onto the counter.

The smell hits Emma’s nose and her stomach starts to instantly turn.

Trying not to gag, her nose wrinkles as she asks, “What is _that_?”

“That,” Granny huffs out as she takes potholders off her hands. “Is a perfectly good pork gone to waste.” The old woman puts a hand on her hip and glares at the group. “That Witch just destroyed Leroy’s dinner. Who’s going to be the one that tells him, because I sure as hell ain’t!”

Emma presses her lips together but her stomach continues to turn, covering her mouth with her fist, she closes her eyes to try and calm herself.

“Emma, are you okay?” Snow asks.

She opens her eyes to see everyone looking at her, so she takes a deep breath and gives a forced smile. “I’m fi—”

Before she can finish her sentence, she feels all the food she’s eaten start to come back up. Turning quickly, she rushes over to the trash can in the corner of the diner because she knows there is no way she is making it to the bathroom. She’s barely there before her body starts to expel whatever she has in her stomach.

Her hair is pulled back and she knows without looking that it’s Killian. She tries to push him away, she doesn’t want him to see her like this, but he huffs and stays put. They both stand there while she throws up for what seems like hours and when she’s done, she swears she’s never going to eat sauerkraut again.

She spits into the trash can, trying to get the taste out of her mouth when he hands her a napkin.

“Thank you,” she mumbles as she takes it to wipe her mouth.

When he doesn’t answer, she crumbles the napkin and throws it in the trash. Her eyes flicker back up to him and she can see they are still filled with anger and hurt, making her want to cry.

Their eyes once again stay locked on each other before David takes a step toward them, “Let’s all go upstairs before Granny kills us all for interrupting her business.”

The old woman walks out from behind the counter and calls out over her shoulder, “I’ll send up some ginger tea. I hear it’s supposed to help.”

She wants to roll her eyes and say she’ll be fine, but Killian puts his arm around her waist and ushers her toward the stairs in the back, so she keeps her mouth shut. They all walk in silence and when they reach their room, she immediately goes to the bathroom to brush her teeth. When she walks out, she sees Regina and her mother sitting at the table in the kitchen area while her father and Killian guard the door.

“I don’t get it,” her mother starts, “why would she need Emma’s baby?”

“The number of spells involving baby parts would surprise you,” Regina says with an eye roll.

Emma’s eyes go wide and she stares at her in horror as she sits down at the table while Killian growls.

“I’m only eight weeks!” she cries out. “The baby barely has any parts!”

Regina opens her mouth but stops, before she sits up in her seat, “Wait, you said she mentioned ‘getting what she came for’?” Both Emma and Snow nod. “I think she just gave us a clue as to what happened back in the Enchanted Forest.”

“What do you mean?” David asks.

“I’m talking about Leo,” Regina explains. “It’s not possible for us to be gone a year and half and for you two to have a one-year-old son, and since we _know_ he’s yours, Zelena must have sped up the pregnancy. That’s what she was probably trying to do with Emma.”

With her eyes wide, Snow asks, “That’s possible?”

Regina tilts her head slightly, “Mostly anything is possible… it would explain why Leo is one and not six months like he should be.”

Emma sees both of her parent’s go stiff, with this new information, it seems Zelena went after her little brother first, but something happened…

“Wait,” she starts. “She said you guys took something from her. That means you guys beat her.”

“Too bad we can’t remember,” Regina mumbles.

They are all silent for a few moments before David finally asks, “What did she do before we found out who she was?”

“Nothing really,” Snow says with a shrug.

Killian looks at Emma with his eyebrow raised and she sighs, “It’s true. Mom and I were having lunch one day and she introduced herself as the midwife and offered to help with Leo. It wasn’t until later when we were at the loft when I had a little bit of morning sickness and she found out… She did seem rather excited about it, though.”

“Do you think she knew about you being pregnant before you got here?” Regina asks with her brow together.

“I don’t see how,” she explains. “I didn’t even know until the night before we came, and you two were the only ones I told.”

For the first time in a long while, Killian finally speaks, his voice still stiff, making her to flinch. “Whale?”

“No,” Snow says as she shakes her head. “I don’t think so. He’s a doctor and takes it very seriously.”

David snorts. “Until the Wicked Witch tortures him for information.”

“If Whale was tortured, we’d hear about it.” Regina explains.

Emma’s eyes flicker over to Killian, she can see the muscles on his jaw ticking while his fist is clenched at his side. Guilt washes over her again because they have been in Storybrooke for three weeks, Regina and her mother have known about her being pregnant the entire time, while he’s just found out. It must be killing him to hear the three of them talking so casually about it while he hasn’t even had time to process the information yet.

There’s a knock at the door and Killian instantly jumps forward to stand in front of her. Regina rolls her eyes at his reaction while Snow just smiles.

David opens the door to reveal one of the waitresses holding a steaming mug. He thanks her before he takes the mug and shuts the door, before he places it on the table and gives her a small smile. Her hands wrap around the mug, and the warm rushes through her body.

Killian snorts. “Perfect, so I _was_ the last to find out.”

Emma winces as she takes a sip of her tea, he’s still angry about her keeping it from him and she knows she deserves every little snide comment and spark of attitude thrown at her, but it’s slowly breaking her heart more and more.

“Are we still going on about this?” Regina asks in disbelief. “She didn’t tell you, you’re upset. But you know now. Get over it.”

He lets out a sarcastic laugh. “Forgive me if I’m still trying to process all of this, _Your Majesty_. I’ve only just learned about it not twenty minutes ago, by that bloody Witch!”

“Okay,” David starts as he takes a step forward with his hand up, trying to stop their argument.

Emma places her hand on her forehead and closes her eyes, she knows this is all her fault, if she would have just gotten over her fear of being left alone and pregnant again, this would have never happened. Now there’s no way she can expect forgiveness from him.

“Well, excuse me, _guy liner_ ,” Regina hisses through clenched teeth. “We don’t have time to let you ‘process’. In case you haven’t noticed, we have a bit of a problem on our hands.”

He takes a step forward. “I’m aware of the problem! I’m bloody well here, aren’t I?”

Regina snorts. “Please, you’re only here for Emma.”

“I’m here because it’s where we belong!” He growls. “If you truly think so little of me, do you believe I would have brought Emma and my son bac—”

Regina shoots up from her seat and glares daggers at him as she shouts, “He is not _your_ son!”

Emma slams her hand onto the table and yells, “Both of you stop!” Neither say anything but they continue to glare at each other. “Regina, I told you, Killian _is_ Henry’s stepfather. I know you don’t like it, but you can’t expect someone to change how they feel. Killian, the person you’re really mad at is me, don’t yell at Regina because you can’t yell at me.”

His jaw ticks and his eyes move down before he turns to look at her. He stares blankly at her for a few seconds before he takes a step back and rubs his hand over his chin. She watches her father mumble something to him, but it’s too soft for her to hear, before Killian nods and crosses his arms over his chest.

They all jump when there is a crash and the sound of breaking glass rings out. When they look up, they see a flying monkey standing on the broken window while it shrieks loudly. Before she can move herself, Killian is pulling her out of the chair and forcing her behind him while David does the same with her mother. The monkey shrieks again and moves to fly toward them, but Regina throws a fireball at it and it crumbles into ash before it’s feet even leave the window sill, a piece of paper floating to the ground in its wake.

She tries to take a step forward, but Killian stops her and a noise of frustration escapes her throat. She wants to yell at him to get the hell out of her way, who did he think he was holding her back? But then his head snaps back to glare at her, it’s then she realizes his right hand is placed over her stomach with his fingers spread out, while his hook is in front of him ready to strike.

He isn’t holding her back, he’s trying to _protect_ her and their unborn child.

Regina walks up to the pile of ash while her parents take a step forward. Emma knows better than to try to move again, his body is still stiff and his hand is still pressed against her stomach. It’s not until she covers his hand with her own that he finally relaxes, but only just barely.

“What does it say?” David asks as Regina stands up with the piece of paper.

Regina’s eyes move over the paper before her jaw locks. “She wants to meet me to meet her on Main Street at sundown.”

“You?” Snow gasps. “I thought she wanted Emma?”

She tries to take another step forward, and this time, he lets her, but he doesn’t move from in front of her as his hand drops from her stomach and he laces his fingers with her own.

“She says she has some things to tell me about my past,” Regina explains before she flips the piece of paper over to check the back. “That’s it.”

Snow shakes her head. “It’s a trap. Regina, I don’t think you should go.”

“Snow’s right,” David agrees. “She could be lying just to get you to meet her.”

Rolling her eyes, the Mayor huffs, “You don’t think I know that? But she’s listing some very specific details in this letter. Things only my family would know.”

David steps up and takes the letter so that the four of them can look it over.

“It says here she’s going to start killing people if you don’t,” Killian reads.

Regina puts her hands on her hips and nods with a sarcastic smile. “I know.”

“I guess that means you have to,” David says softly. “We can’t take the chance she’s bluffing.”

Panic washing over her as all the horrible things can happen when they meet up, she rushes out, “We need to get Henry out of here.” Both Killian and Regina look at her and she motions to the paper. “I don’t want him anywhere around for when this showdown takes place. Plus, he doesn’t have his memories, how would we explain two witches brawling in the middle of Main Street?”

“I’ll go to the park and tell Robin to bring him back. Then I’m going to my vault.” Regina moves to walk toward the door but Killian steps up.

“Ugh, fancy fixing our window, lass? I don’t need the Widow Lucas coming up here causing riot.”

Pressing her lips together, she waves her hand, instantly, the window is fixed and the glass along with the pile of ash is gone.

“Why do you need to go to your vault?” David asks with his brows together.

She stops with her hand on the door and looks back over her shoulder. “Look through my mother’s things. Maybe there’s a clue in there that will let me know what this Wicked Witch has to tell me.”

Emma turns back to her parents after she leaves. “You guys should think about getting Leo out, too. It’s not safe and I know both of you will want to be there.”

Snow nods before the worry is evident on her face. “Where are we going to send them?”

They all stand there in silence for a few moments before Killian offers, “Could take them out on the water. It’ll get them out of the town in case something happens, but keep them close enough to know if it’s safe to return.”

She turns to him, “Can we use the Jolly? Maybe tell Henry it’s a… tour boat of some kind?”

With a roll of his eyes, he groans, “ _Ship_.”

“Ship, okay. Can we use it?”

David and Killian exchange a look and she tilts her head. When she looks over at her mother, the woman shakes her head letting her know she has no idea what it’s about either before Killian turns back to her.

“I’m sure we can come up with something.”

She stares at him but he keeps his face blank, there’s something he’s not telling her, she just knows it. He arches an eyebrow up at her, almost daring her to question him, and she stays silent, she can’t exactly call him out on keeping something from her when he’s just found out she’s been keeping something from him.

“Okay, but who’s going to take them out?” Snow asks.

Motioning to him, Emma starts, “Well, Killian can—”

“Like bloody hell I am!” He growls, causing her to sigh. “That Wicked Witch is after you and our unborn child. Do you really expect me to—”

Cutting him off, she cries out, “Protect our _other_ child? Yes!”

His face goes soft and he takes a step back. She can tell he’s having an internal debate, he wants to stay and protect her, but he also wants to make sure Henry is safe.

Taking a step closer to him, she continues, “Tell me who else I should trust to keep our son and my brother safe? Tell me who _you_ would trust to do that?”

He lets out a sigh and runs his hand over his face as her father takes a step up and puts his hand on the Pirate’s shoulder.

“Trust me when I say I’m not going to let anything happen to her, just like I’m trusting you not to let anything happen to my grandchild and son.”

Killian searches his face for a couple seconds before he finally nods. “Aye. I’ll take Henry and the little Prince.”

Emma wraps her arms around his shoulders, squeezes her eyes shut, before she whispers, “Thank you.”

* * *

Leo yanks at the ends of her hair with a shriek and Emma laughs. Belle dropped him off after her parents called her, then the three of them went to go see if they could find anything that might help Regina.

“Mom!” Henry calls out as he runs out of the diner with Killian behind him.

They haven’t gotten a free moment together since he found out about the pregnancy and it’s weighing on her, because she knows the more time passes, the angrier he’ll get and she doesn’t want to wake up one morning to him not being there.

But she also can’t be selfish, Zelena has threatened the whole town and they need to worry about Henry’s safety.

“Killian’s going to take me out on a boat again!”

She smiles and reaches over to brush her hand through his hair. “I think you mean ship, kid.”

Henry’s brows go together and he looks over at his stepfather, “I thought you said it was a boat?”

She looks up at Killian in confusion and he chuckles as puts his arm around Henry’s shoulder. “Aye, it is.”

Her eyes squint at him but he keeps his face blank, like he does every time the Jolly is brought up. Leo lets out another shriek and starts to squirm in her arms. She looks down to see Henry tickling the baby’s belly with a laugh.

“What’s LL doing here?”

“LL?” she asks in confusion.

“Yeah,” he says with a smile. “Little Leo.”

Both adults laugh before she tells him, “He’s actually going to go out with you guys. Mary Margaret and David asked for a little time off and I have to work on my case, so Killian offered to take him. Is that alright?”

Henry’s face lights up for a quick second before he looks up at her with a frown. “Does this have anything to do with the person who killed my dad?”

She sucks in a breath and feels her heart start to race, she doesn’t want to lie to him, but she can’t tell him the truth.

Thankfully, Killian steps forward and takes the lead, “Lad, why don’t you do me a favor and take the babe’s bag and car seat to your mother’s car for me. We’ll talk more out on the waves, aye?”

Henry’s shoulders sag but he nods. Emma gives him a kiss on the cheek before he grabs the items and runs off. Leo starts to squirm again and she giggles when she sees him reaching for Killian. A small smile appears on his face, the first she’s seen since Zelena showed up, before he steps forward and takes her brother from her arms.

Leo lets out an excited cry and slaps his hand against Killian’s face. They both laugh before the baby tries to reach for his left arm. He lifts it up and when the baby sees his prosthetic instead of his hook, his little face scrunches up in confusion before he looks back at Killian with a noise.

Snorting, he says in amusement, “Never thought I’d find someone who missed my hook.”

She smiles and hands Leo his teething ring to distract him. “Oh, I don’t know. I kind of miss it when it’s not on.”

His eyes snap to hers and she feels her cheeks blush.

She bites her lip and whispers with a shrug, “I’m a fan of every part of you.”

His eyes search hers and she gives him a small nod.

“Aye,” he starts softly. “Just not a fan enough to tell me that you’re with child.”

She winces, he’s still angry and hurt and she deserves everything he wants to throw at her.

“It wasn’t—”

“Wasn’t what, Swan?” he demands. “Wasn’t you keeping me in the dark? Or was it that you believed I didn’t deserve to know?”

Tears prick her eyes and when he finally looks up at her, she sucks in a breath.

“I was going to tell you, I just—”

Taking a step back, he adjusts her brother in his arms and reaches up to wipe his lips, “You know, I understand you telling your mother, Regina, not so much, but your mother, I understand that. But Bae? How could you ever _think_ it was okay to tell him before you told me?”

Her chin quivers and she tries to keep her hands from shaking. “I didn’t want him to find out from anyone else.”

The choked noise that passes his lips makes her realize how stupid her excuse is. Again, she was selfish.

“You didn’t want _him_ to find out from anyone else,” he stares at her as she starts to pant. “But it was alright that I found out from the Wicked Witch?”

Stepping forward she places her hands on his chest as Leo lays his head down on Killian’s shoulder, “No, I _never_ wanted that. Please you have to believe me.”

His eyes search hers once again before he sucks in a breath and murmurs, “I don’t know what to believe anymore. I’ve given you your space. I’ve given you everything that you’ve bloody asked for, but it’s not enough. How could you do this to me?”

Her head drops as she tries to figure out what to say to him. He’s right, of course. This whole time he’s been following her lead, allowing her to walk away when the memory of their happiness was too much, and holding her close when all she wanted was to feel him against her.

He always gives her anything she asks for, and how does she pay him in return? By being selfish.

“Hey,” Henry calls out as he walks up, making her take a step back. “Are we ready?”

Killian closes his eyes in frustration and cracks his neck. “Aye. Take Leo to the car for me, lad, I’ll be right there.”

Their son looks back and forth between them before he nods and takes the baby from Killian. They hear Leo giggle as Henry walks him back to the car, telling the little baby all about what they are going to do once they get out on the boat.

Fear stabs her heart that this might be the last time she ever sees him, but then she remembers he’s leaving with their son and her little brother, and though he might hate her at the moment, he would never take Henry away from her.

“The real tragedy in all of this,” he starts low, his voice hard and full of anguish. “is that in the back of your mind, you still think I’m going to leave.”

Her body goes stiff and her eyes move to the ground.

From the corner of her eye, she sees him shake his head as he clears his throat. “I have to take our son and your brother sailing now.” Her head snaps up. “Call as soon as it’s safe to come back.”

She opens her mouth to say… _something_ , but stops short because he’s right and there is nothing she can say to change that.

Voice low, he tells her, “We’ll talk when I get back.”

Tears prick her eyes and she looks back up at him. “We keep saying that.”

“There’s a difference now,” his eyes move to hers. “I’m not letting you walk away this time.”

* * *

Emma taps her fingers on the table in her room as her knee bounces. The fight with Zelena was intense now all she wants is Killian and Henry back so she can make sure they are okay. Her mother had called her to let her know he dropped Leo off, so they should be there any minute, but it’s still taking too long. She’s just about to call his cell phone when she hears him outside of the door. She shoots up out of her chair and yanks the door open to find Killian standing there with a sleeping Henry in his arms and his hand out to grab the handle.

“Swan?”

Completing forgetting about the anger he still held toward her, she wraps her arms around his shoulders, and mumbles into his neck, “You guys are okay.”

“Aye, love. I spoke with you on the phone, remember?”

She pulls back and gives him a nod before she leans up and kisses Henry’s cheek. “I know, but it’s better when I see you.”

She moves out of the way so he can carry their son into the room. He lays him down softly on the couch bed before he rushes back over to her. His hand hovers her stomach and his eyes look her over.

“How are you? Are you alright?”

Her brow pinches together because she doesn’t see any hint of the anger he had before he left, his face is filled with concern and she bites her lip. She doesn’t want to tell him about how Gold knocked her down, but from past experience, she knows if she tries to keep something from him, someone will just end up telling him.

“Um,” she starts and his body instantly goes stiff. “No, it’s fine,” she says quickly. “Gold just knocked me down.”

His eyes widen before he starts to search her again, frantically.

She puts her hands on his arms to stop him. “I’m okay, everything's okay. It was just a push.”

He puffs out a breath of air before he pulls her into his arms. Her face scrunches in confusion but she breathes him in, trying to cement his scent to memory. It feels good to be in his arms and for those brief seconds, she lets herself believe that he’s not angry, that he loves her and everything is going to be okay.

They stand there for a couple moments just holding each other until they hear Henry snore from behind them before they go to finish putting him to bed.

“How was Leo?” she asks in a whisper.

Killian lays Henry back down after they put his pajama top on and sends her a smirk.

“I’m going to make a pirate out of the little Prince.”

She has to cover her mouth so her giggle won’t wake up Henry before they walk into the bedroom. She sits down on the bed and Killian hands her his phone before he starts to move to undress. A small smile appears on her face when she sees the background image, it's a picture of the three of them Henry took two days ago when they went to the park, before she goes to his photos. Her cheeks start to hurt from all her smiling as she looks over the pictures of Henry and her little brother.

“Did Henry have a good time?”

Killian removes his jacket before he takes his waist coat off. “There’s more of Bae in Henry then you realize, love.”

Looking up at him with sad smile, she mumbles, “I know, he deserves to know who his father is.”

“Aye.” She sighs and puts his phone down on the bed. “How did the Queen fare against the witch?”

“She survived, and, oh fun little fact. Zelena is Regina’s sister.”

He stops untying his boots and looks up at her in shock. “She’s _what_?”

“Apparently Cora had a lot of secrets,” she says with a nod.

He blinks and shakes his head. “So it would seem.”

When he sits down on the edge of the bed to take his boots off, she moves over to sit next to him.

“She tried to take Regina’s heart, but she didn’t bring it with her.”

He snorts. “She learned that from her mother, I wager.”

“Belle is going to do some research. Regina seems to think since she took David’s courage and wants her heart that…”

“They are ingredients.” She raises her eyebrow and he chuckles. “You don’t spend centuries trying to defeat the Crocodile without picking up on a few things, love.” Her stomach growls loudly and he looks over at her. “Have you eaten?”

She can feel her cheeks burn. “Well, with everything that’s happened…”

He huffs before walking over to the phone on the end table. Shooting up from the bed when he picks up the phone, she starts waving her hands at him.

“It’s too late,” she hisses. “It’s not a big deal.”

He gives her a glare before he speaks into the phone. “Ruby… it’s just as we discussed… let me ask.” He moves the phone away from his mouth and looks at her. “What do you want, love?”

She crosses her arms over her chest. “What are you doing? What do you mean it’s as you discussed? The diner is closed, Killian! It’s fine!”

He pulls the phone away from his ear and presses the mouth piece on his chest. “Swan, you don’t tell me what you want, Ruby is just going to cook everything on the menu.”

She presses her lips together and keeps her mouth shut. She refuses to put anyone out just because she didn’t make it back to the diner in time to grab dinner. He raises his eyebrows and she gives him a pointed look before he nods and puts the phone back to his ear.

“Aye, everything then…”

Stepping forward, she slaps his arm. “Will you stop it!”

“Then you better choose, or else the wolf’s going to be cooking for a long time.”

“Fine,” she huffs. “A cheeseburger.”

He smirks before he brings the phone back to his ear. “A cheeseburger, please…” he looks back at her and moves the mouthpiece down. “Anything on it?”

She squirms and rubs her hands together. “Relish and ketchup.” He nods and moves to speak into the phone when she takes a step forward. “And mayo.”

His eyebrows lift. “Anything else?”

“Onion rings and a strawberry milkshake.”

Chuckling, he moves the phone back to his mouth. “Did you get all that… aye… Henry’s asleep so… smashing… cheers, lass.” He hangs up the phone and turns back to her with a smart ass grin. “Was that so hard?”

“What did you two discuss?”

He ducks his head and shrugs. “The wolf girl and I came to an accord. Since we both know how distracted you tend to get, she’s willing to cook you anything you want, at any time, you need just ask.”

Her hands clench into fists. “I’m _pregnant_ , Killian, not an invalid.”

“Aye, and because you are with child, you need to eat properly. I don’t know much, but I know that’s one of the most important things.”

She lets out a huff and plops down onto the bed. It is nice to know that he’s looking out for her, it makes her feel all warm inside, but she doesn’t like people going out of their way for her, it makes her uncomfortable.

They stay silent as he walks over to their door and closes it. As soon as she hears the click, her heart starts to race. The moment she’s been dreading since she found out she was pregnant is here and there’s nothing she can do. Her instincts tell her to run, to avoid it at all costs, but when he looks back at her with his eyebrow raised, she knows that what he told her before about not letting her walk away was true.

“Are you going to yell at me now?”

He leans back against the dresser and crosses his arms. “You think I want to yell at you?”

She shrugs and looks down at her lap, “Seems like you did, earlier.”

“I’d just learned we’re about to have a child by the Wicked Witch, give me a little bit of a break, Swan,” he huffs as he takes off his prosthetic.

“I know you’re angry. I didn’t _plan_ this, if that’s what you’re thinking. I was just as shocked as you when I found out.”

He chuckles and clicks his hook into place. “I doubt it.”

She sighs and bends her left leg up on the bed when she turns to him.

“I was going to tell you so many times…” she shakes her head.

“Why didn’t you?”

“I don’t know,” he raises his eyebrow and she sighs. “Fear… doubt… trying to deal with what’s going on here…”

“So you thought it best to put unwarranted stress upon yourself? I may not know much, but I know that stress is never good for a woman with child.”

“No matter what you think… I _was_ going to tell you.”

He shrugs and looks to the ground, “Whenever you got around to it, I wager.”

“Killian...” she breathes out.

“Is it because I’m a pirate?”

She lets out a watery chuckle and shakes her head, “No. I don’t care that you’re a pirate, despite what I’ve said in the past.”

“Do you feel that I may be unfit to be a father, because I-I understand that but I--”

She shoots up from the bed and gasps out, “No, of course not!”

“Then why?”

“I was going to tell you early… it’s why I asked for us to talk.”

He shakes his head. “It doesn’t change the fact that it’s been _weeks_ and I’m just learning.”

Her arms wrap around herself and she almost swears she sees his body twitch, but he doesn’t move.

“I know, I should have told you sooner--”

“Sooner?” he chokes out. “You should have told me that night in New York!”

Flinching she runs her hands through her hair. “I didn’t… I wasn’t…”

“Are you sure that’s when you found out?”

Her eyes snap up to him. “W-what?”

She watches as he sucks in a breath. “Please, tell me that you didn’t keep this from me when we were hap--” he stops and shakes his head. “Is that truly when you learned?”

She bites her lip to keep it from shivering. Because of what she did, he’s questioning everything she’s told him.

“I _swear_ I found out after you and David left for the airport. When I was sick, being pregnant didn’t even cross my mind.”

His eyes search hers before he gives a tight nod and he looks down at the ground. There are a million things she wants to say but all she can do is stay silent and wait. Wait for the words that she knows are coming… she’s hurt him too much, he doesn’t love her anymore and he’s going to leave.

“How could you do this to me?” he repeats and it’s like a sword through her heart.

Licking her lips, she murmurs, “You were right, I thought you would leave once you found out.”

His face turns to frustration and he groans, “What the bloody hell is it going to take for you to…”

“I know, we’ve been through this, okay? But you need to realize that I was pregnant before and was left alone.” She chokes out a sob and slaps her hand on her thigh. “I know you love me, Killian. On the long list of things that I regret, doubting your feelings for me after we got our memories back is up there, but I guess when I got my memories back, they brought back some of my walls, too. And it’s not fair, you spent a lot of time in New York breaking them down, but you didn’t sign on for this. We never talked about kids… we have Henry, but more…” she shakes her head. “I know I have issues. Being pregnant doesn’t exactly help with my hormones either, and it doesn’t matter how many times Regina or my mother told me it’s ridiculous, I still had this voice in the back of my head that told me you were going to leave once you found out.”

He stares at her in disbelief. A tear runs down her cheek and she wipes it away. She feels so raw and so open and part of her wants to run, but she keeps herself seated on the bed.

He wipes his chin and when her eyes finally connect with his, she can see tears sparkling in them. “You don’t trust me.”

“Excuse me?” she hisses as she takes a step toward him.

His words aren’t even a question, it’s like he already knows, or he _thinks_ he already knows the answer and it pisses her off.

“Your feelings have changed...”

“That’s what you think this is about? That I don’t love you anymore?”

He shakes his head and gives a shrug. “Is that not what this is about?”

“Of _course_ I still love you!” she cries, making his mouth drop open and his eyes widen slightly.  “I love you so much, it hurts,” she chokes out, tears once again running down her face. “I miss you, _every day_ , and you’re right in front of me. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I’m sorry that I let my past fears cloud my judgement. I do trust you. I trust you more than anyone I know. But everyone I have ever been with is _dead_. Graham… now Neal…”

“Is that why you’ve been pulling away from me?”

She reaches up to wipe her nose. “I can’t lose you, too.”

His eyes search her face and she shrugs. Everything is out in the open now, she has no more secrets left to keep.

“Well, love,” she looks up as he pushes away from the dresser. “You don’t have to worry about me, because if there’s one thing I’m good at, it’s surviving.”

Her lips twitch at his words, but she stays silent. It’s such a cocky, Killian thing to say and she wants to argue with him, but can’t because they’ve made her feel better. Before she can say anything, he moves in, wraps his arm around her waist, and presses his lips down on her own.

Whimpering, she reaches up to cup his face, her thumb brushing over the scar on his cheek as he tightens his hold on her. When they pull apart, he rests his forehead against her own.

“We’re going to have a _baby_ ,” he whispers in awe.

She opens her eyes and is surprised to see a dazzling grin on his face. She stares at him in shock and her body goes tense. The anger when he first found out is gone, it’s replaced with pure _happiness_. Why is he happy? He was so angry before. That’s what she’s expected…

His brow goes together and he pulls back to look at her fully. “What is it?”

“Why are you so calm about this? Do you realize what is happening right now?”

“We’re going to have a baby,” he repeats.

His hand and hook go to her arms but she backs away. Her body starts trembling and her hands ring together in front of her.

“Emma...” he starts, his voice low. “What’s wrong?”

“I… well… I guess I’m just… worried.”

He lets out a dry chuckle. “About what, love?”

Taking a step back, she starts to fidget with the ring on her finger. “Are you sure you want this, Killian?”

His mouth pops open and he looks at her in disbelief. “You don’t believe me?’

“Is this going to be enough for you?” She looks back up at him and motions around. “Am I going to be enough? You’ve always said how the Jolly is your home, what if one day you wake up and decide you want to be on the ocean again or if you regret all of this and end up hating me? I couldn’t live with myself if that happened.”

“ _You’re_ my home. You, Henry, and our unborn child.”

Tears prick her eyes and she wants to believe him, but she can’t stop the voices in her head.

“But you spent hundreds of years with your ship, it was the only thing…”

“The Jolly isn’t here, Emma.”

Her eyes snap up to him and her brow goes together in confusion. “Yes, it is. Mom told me it came over with the new curse…”

His jaw clenches as he shakes his head. “She was mistaken--”

“You’re lying.” Staying silent, he just stares at her, his face completely blank. “Does this have anything to do with how you really got your memories back?”

His thumb loops through his belt and he chews on his bottom lip. They are both quiet for a couple seconds before he finally sighs. “Your father gave me a memory potion.”

“But I thought he said they only had one.”

“Aye, they did. David came to the pub that afternoon. He couldn’t face seeing his daughter look at him like he was a stranger.”

“What happened then?”

“He gave me some photos the lad took before we left. He was held up at Bae’s old flat, so I went there to confront him about them. We talked and he gave me the potion. After that, all we needed was a potion for you.”

“That’s not easy to come by in a world without magic.”

He presses his lips together and looks down at his feet. “It is if you have a friend that can travel through realms and something of value to trade.”

She snorts. “Yeah, what was that?”

He sighs and looks up at her with a fake smile. “Why the Jolly Roger, of course.”

Her mind goes blank and she stares at him in shock as she tries to process what he’s just told her. The dreaded Captain Hook, feared by all who sailed the open seas, the man who spent hundreds of years fueled by only vengeance aboard his beloved ship, _traded_ it all so she could come back to save her family.

“You traded your ship for me?” she asks in a whisper.

This whole time, one her main reasons for not telling him about the baby, was because she was terrified he’d chose the Jolly over her and he, _once again_ , gave it up for her.

Swallowing, he gives a nod and says softly, “Aye.”

She’s moving before she even realizes it and puts her lips on his. They kiss softer than she can ever remember and she knows in that instant, all the insecurities she’s ever had about him, fly out the window.

Because of all the people in her life, Killian Jones is the only one that has never and _will_ never leave her.


	24. Chapter Twenty-Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i think you guys seems to be happy with the results of the last chapter, i mean, it was the most notes i’ve gotten yet hehe you all are amazing, i love interacting and talking with all of you <3 Also, little note I want everyone to remember, as well all know, Emma is pregnant, so some things might seem a little OOC, because even the savior can’t control those emotions, also, I’ve never been pregnant. All my research on the subject comes from google. So, forgive me if something doesn’t see exactly right to you :D

** Chapter Twenty-Four **

The moment Emma’s lips touched his, Killian knew that everything that had been between them was gone and _they_ were back.

There’s no resistance, she isn’t holding back anymore, her body molds against his and fits perfectly like it always has. He doesn’t even know who moves first, but somehow, they end up on top of their bed, with him touching every inch of her that he’s missed touching in the past three weeks.

He pulls back and his eyes search hers, “And our engagement?”

She bites her lip with tears in her eyes, “If you’ll still have me.”

Diving back in, he starts to show her just how much he’ll still have her.

Emma loves him, she still loves him. After everything they have gone through, before and after New York, she still loves him. Part of him hoped she did, he blames Charming for rubbing off on him, but until she said the actual words, he wasn’t certain.

And they are having a child.

The last time he even entertained the _thought_ of having a child of his own was with Milah, but she had been so against it, whenever he brought it up, she would fly into a rage, so he just pushed it from his mind. Then after she was gone… he never believed it would be possible.

Until he met Emma.

She turned his world upside down the moment they met in the Enchanted Forest. Now he has her, she’s _his_ , she loves him, they have a wonderful son, and a child on the way.

All of his deepest dreams and wishes are coming true.

His phone goes off while he’s sucking on his favorite part of her neck. Her quiet whimpers and gasps of breath are driving him completely insane and all he wants to do is bury himself so deep in her that he forgets where he stops and she begins.

“Ignore it,” she pleads with her hands in his hair.

He chuckles and swipes his tongue over the love mark he’s left. “That would be the wolf with your food, my love.”

Her hands slap down onto the bed and she lets out a frustrated moan. He kisses her nose before he jumps up from the bed with a smirk. He makes sure he’s steps are quiet, as to not wake up Henry, and adjusts his pants before opening the door.

The brunette stands there with her eyebrows up at and her red lips curved into a smirk.

“Ruby,” he sighs.

“Captain,” she chuckles.

She hands him the brown bag along with a paper cup.

“I trust this wasn’t much trouble?”

Ruby snorts and crosses her arms over her chest. “With how much gold was in that little nap sack Mr. Smee dropped off, Granny said her kitchen is open anytime you want it.”

“Good.”

He prepares to shut the door when he sees Ruby open her mouth and motion inside. “How is she feeling?”

“Uh,” he looks toward the bedroom before he turns back to her, “pregnant, I wager. Just trying to get her to rest.”

Ruby nods her head. “Well, like I said, the kitchen is open anytime she needs something.”

“Much obliged,” he says with a nod.

Before he can shut the door, Ruby smirks at him. “Have fun… _resting_.”

He gives her a glare and the wolf girl walks off with a chuckle. He closes the door and checks to make sure Henry is still asleep before he heads back into the bedroom. He becomes slightly concerned when he sees her lying on the bed right where he left her, only she has her arms crossed over her head and she’s breathing heavy.

“What’s wrong?”

Her arms fling down and she rubs her hands on her thighs as she sits up.

“I’m eight weeks pregnant, that’s what’s wrong. So my hormones are crazy right now and you have me so turned on that I feel like I’m about to combust but I can also smell the food and I’m starving.”

He bites his bottom lip and tries not to laugh. Her cheeks are flush and her hair looks absolutely _wrecked_. The erection in his pants is quite uncomfortable and he wants nothing more than to take her, but he knows she needs to eat.

He leans forward and kisses her chin. “You eat, darling, then I promise we will pick up right where we left off.”

When he looks up, he sees her wipe tears away.

“Hey,” he whispers, handing her the cup and putting the bag on the bed. “Why are you crying?”

She opens her mouth but a sob escapes and he pulls her into his arms. He rubs his hook up and down her back and puts his hand in her hair. “I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.”

She pulls back and shakes her head as she wipes her tears. “You didn’t hurt my feelings.”

He reaches up to brush his knuckles over her cheeks and gives her a small smile. “You’re crying, love.”

Her arms shove him away, softly, without much fight and she waves them in front of her as she sobs, “Yeah, well, I’m pregnant and I’ve been trying to hold back my emotions since we got here and now I don’t know how to stop!”

Holding his hand and hook up in submission, he back tracks, “Okay, okay. You can cry if you want.”

“I don’t want to cry!”

He takes a deep breath and sits there not knowing what to do, he’s never seen her like this before and he’s afraid if he says something wrong, she’ll break.

Hesitantly, he asks, “What do you want?”

She lets out a little sob and sniffles before she brings her cup up to her mouth and sucks the liquid through the straw. “I want to eat, I’m really hungry.”

Leaning forward, he kisses her forehead, “Okay, love. I’ll get you a plate.”

When he stands, she starts to cry harder causing her shoulders to jerk. He sits back down and pulls her into his arms, he feels so helpless and all he wants to do is make her feel better.

“Emma, you have to tell me what to do, darling. I don’t want you to be upset.”

She pulls back and tries to push him away again. “I know! I can’t stop.”

Her arms wrap around his shoulders and she lays her head down. Eventually, she starts to calm and he lets out a small sigh of relief.

“I’m sorry,” she mumbles. “You’re just being very sweet about this whole thing.”

“Perhaps I should try another tactic?” She pulls back and slaps him on the arm. He chuckles and swipes his thumb across her chin. “I’ll get you a plate.”

“Okay,” she pouts before she leans forward and kisses him. “I love you.”

His grin widens and he can feel his cheeks start to tint. “I love you, too.”

He lounges next to her on the bed and leans on his right elbow as he watches her all but _inhale_ the cheeseburger. She has always liked food, back in New York he used to jest with her about it and sometimes, just to get him going, she would comment back with her mouth full, _“I may love food more than I love you, babe.”_

But this is something different entirely. She’s making noises that are usually reserved for him when he’s nibbling on her hip bone, only now they are because of food, and he finds it absolutely adorable. He’s about to comment on it when she takes the lid off of her milkshake and dips an onion ring into it.

“Bloody hell,” he groans with a look of disgust on his face. “Forgive me, but that is disgusting.”

She giggles as she covers her mouth.

“Well, get used to it buddy,” she dips another onion ring in her drink. “Do you know what I did at my parent’s house the other day?”

Trying not to gag when she pops the cream covered ring in her mouth, he shakes his head, “I do not.”

“I ate a jar of pickles. I mean, like an _entire_ jar of pickles, and I’m not even talking about throughout the day. In _one_ sitting… a whole jar! I would have gone out and got more but you and David were on your way and I didn’t want—”

He looks down and she stops talking. She may only be eight weeks pregnant, but she’s known since they first arrived, so he’s already missed things.

Letting out sigh, she mumbles, “I’m sorry.”

He shakes his head and looks up at her. “’S alright, Swan. I know now, that’s all that matters.”

“Do you hate me?” Her voice is so small and fragile, it nearly breaks his heart.

With a snort, he sits up and he pulls her to his chest. “I don’t think there has _ever_ been a moment in my entire life that I hated you.”

She pops another onion ring in her mouth. “Think you hated me plenty back in the Enchanted Forest when I left you up on that beanstalk.”

He smiles to himself and presses his nose into her hair. “I’ve come to realize that what I felt that day was disappointment, not hatred.”

Her head moves so she can look up at him. “I disappointed you?”

He brushes his lips over her forehead and pulls her closer. “I disappointed myself. I didn’t trust anyone then, and I trusted you. When you left me, the anger I felt was toward myself because I was fooled by a pretty face.” Her eyes shine bright with tears and he reaches up to brush his knuckles over her cheek. “And what a pretty face it is.”.

She bites her lip to hide her smile. “Do you want to know something I’ve never told anyone before?”

He smirks. “Always.”

She sits up and eats the last onion ring before she says, “I went back for you three times.”

His mouth pops open, “What?”

She nods and her fingers pick at the paper cup in her hands. “Once before I left and twice climbing down the beanstalk. Talked myself out of it each time,” she looks over at him and shrugs. “My walls were really high then.”

His lips pull into a small smile. They have both come so far since that day, it almost seems like their first meeting is just a story in a book, well, their _official_ first meeting. Their meeting in New York was less exciting, but it stills burns in his mind, because just like in the Enchanted Forest, he couldn’t take his eyes off of her.

He remembers how in the Enchanted Forest, he watched her from the corner of his eye. The way she moved, the way she spoke, how the sun seemed to make her glow, he told himself back then it was because he knew she was the Savior and Cora told him to keep watch of her, but he knows the truth.

Just like in New York, he kept his eyes on her because she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.

But unlike New York, in the Enchanted Forest, his walls were filled with hate and vengeance, and they were up as high as hers and he wasn't willing to break them down.

“Aye, so were mine.”

They share a smile before she looks down shyly and drinks her milkshake. When she’s finished, he takes the empty containers and throws them away. He walks back into the room to see her dressed for bed and her lips in a small pout.

“I’m really tired, now.”

Chuckling, he shakes his head.  “Let’s go to sleep then. It’s been a long day.”

When he’s finished stripping down to his boxers, he climbs into bed. Emma unclicks his hook and puts it under the pillow. Normally, with the knowledge of the dangers that lurk out there, he would sleep with his hook on, prepared for a fight if necessary. But Henry has yet to get his memories back and they couldn’t risk him waking up in the middle of the night and seeing it, so he takes it off, but keeps it close.

He clicks the light off and she snuggles into his chest. He holds her close and breathes in her scent as his hand goes to brush over her stomach. Her lips moving into a smile tickles his chest as he rubs his thumb across her.

The thought of being a father absolutely _terrifies_ him. His own father abandoned him and Liam to a life of servitude to save his own skin. Then he went on to have another family and named his _other_ son, Killian’s little brother, after Liam. A redo, he called it.

The anger still courses through him when he thinks about it, but so does regret, because of all the horrible things he’s done in the centuries that he’s lived, what happened the last time he saw his father, is his biggest regret of them all.

A shiver runs through him and he pulls her even closer. He _hopes_ their love is strong enough to withstand the demons from his past, but he’s scared to tell her. There are plenty of dark spots in his past that she doesn’t know about, just like there are parts in her past that he doesn’t know about, but this is different.

How can he be a good father when he murdered his own?

“I think we should wait to tell Henry,” she whispers.

He breaks from his thoughts and looks down at her. “Aye?”

She nods. “I mean, we’re going to have to tell him eventually, but maybe we can wait until he gets his memories back, which we have to figure out how to do soon. He’s going to start questioning why we aren’t going back to New York.”

He moves his head until she looks up at him. They’ve never discussed what they’re going to do once this whole problem with the Wicked Witch is over, and now seems like a better time than any.

“Are we going back to New York?”

She blinks and puts her hand on his chest to lean up. “Do you want to go back?”

Reaching up to cup her face, his thumb caresses her jaw, “I think we should stay here. Your family is here, New York was nice for us, but it’s not home.”

Her face softens. “It was home for us when we were there.”

He smiles. “Wherever you and Henry are is my home. Do you not get that by now?”

She moves forward and whispers against his lips, “I think I’m starting to.”

He moans as she lifts her leg to straddle him.

“Thought you were tired?” he asks in a soft whisper.

She hovers over him, her long blonde hair curtaining their faces. “One of the benefits of being pregnant. My hormones can change at the drop of a hat.”

She goes to kiss him again, but his whole body goes stiff.

Pregnant.

Emma’s pregnant and she wants to make love.

Killian gets this terrible fear that he’s going to hurt her and it makes him want to scream. He wants her, more than he can ever remember wanting her, but she’s with child and he would sooner die than do anything that would put her and their unborn child in danger.

She must feel the difference, because she pulls back and looks at him with her brow together.

“What’s wrong?”

His hand and braced arm rest on her hips as he sighs, “I’m not quite sure we should go any further, love.”

She sits up fully and he tries not to hiss when her bottom comes in contact with his lap.

“Why not?”

“You’re with child…”

She sucks in a breath and he can see tears form in her eyes. “You’re not attracted to me now that I’m pregnant? I’m not even showing yet!”

He looks at her with pure horror.

“Are you mad?” His hand grips her hip and he pushes himself up letting her feel how much he’s attracted to her. “Does this feel like I’m not attracted to you?”

“Then why--”

“I don’t want to hurt the baby, love.” He whispers, his hand reaching to ghost over her stomach. “That’s all.”

She lets out a snort. “Killian, you’re not going to hurt the baby! Sex is perfectly normal during pregnancy.”

He gives her a look of doubt and she lets out a sigh before she leans over to grab her phone off the end table.

“Here,” she says and slaps the phone onto his chest. “You lived in the modern world for a year and a half, I know you know what the term ‘google it’ means.”

Rolling his eyes, he picks up the cell phone. He’s just pulled up the website when he sees her cross her arms over her chest.

“You’re lucky I’m pregnant and horny, because if I wasn’t, I’d be banning sex for a week!”

He arches his eyebrow at her and smirks. She tried banning sex from him back in New York a couple times but she rarely lasted two days, let alone a week.

“Don’t look at me like that,” she growls.

He chuckles and nods before he brings up the article that first appears.

**_Does sex during pregnancy harm the baby?_ **

_No, a baby isn’t hurt when a pregnant woman and--_

He stops reading and tosses the phone aside before he sits up and presses his lips to hers. She lets out a muffled giggle and wraps her arms around his shoulders while he moves down to kiss her jaw.

Sighing, she murmurs, “See, I told you. Besides, pretty soon I’m going to be all big and you’re not even going to want to come near me.”

He lets out a groan and pulls her down onto his lap. The thought of Emma’s stomach large and round because of a child, _their_ child, sends a primal urge through him.

“Emma,” he moans against her neck. “I can assure you, I’ll most certainly want to be near you.”

Her chuckle turns into a moan as he licks her pulse point. They don’t hesitate with ripping their clothes off and when she sinks herself down onto him, he lays back with a hiss. His eyes rake over her body and he’s suddenly aware of the subtle differences he hadn’t noticed before. Her breasts seem fuller, larger even, and her stomach, though it’s still flat, is different. He’s always been able to see the outline of her ribs whenever she stretched, or bent back, something that’s intrigued him since he knows how she eats, but now, he can’t see any hint of her bones.

Running his hand up her stomach, he cups her left breast as she rocks above him, throwing her head back with a whimper. He pinches her nipple in between his fingers and her mouth falls open in a silent cry. His neck tenses as he feels her tighten around him and he watches her beautiful face while she comes undone on top of him.

“Bloody hell, love,” he whispers. “That was fast.”

Her head falls forward and she smiles down at him almost drunkenly. “Another benefit of being pregnant.”

He sits up fully and wraps his arms around her.

“Allow me to take full advantage of this benefit, then.”

She lets outs an airy chuckle and pulls him closer to her. Their lips are inches apart as they move together and they breathe each other in while he moves his hand up to her hair and cups the back of her head.

“I missed you,” she whispers against his lips.

His heart soars and his arms tighten around her, reminding him of their reconciliation back in New York. He spent so much time doubting her, doubting _them_ , when he should have known that their love was real.

“I missed you, too,” he answers before he kisses her.

Her hips jerk and she grinds herself down onto him. Unlike the last two times they have been together since they’ve come back to Storybrooke, this time is different because it finally feels like they are back to normal... back to themselves.

His lips move down her neck to kiss her chest bone while her fingers tangle in his hair. The ring on the end of the necklace he gave her so long ago presses into his chest. Not even with his memories back does he regret giving it to her, that ring is one of the main reasons why he’s been alive for so long, or, at least he thinks it is, and if he can pass that good fortune onto Emma, he’d do it gladly. Her movements start to become erratic and he can tell she’s already close to exploding again.

“Oh, Emma,” he groans. “Again, give it to me again.”

She nods her head and he moves down to take her nipple into his mouth. She lets out a tiny squeak before her teeth bite down on his shoulder. He feels pain for about two seconds before it’s replaced by pleasure as she clamps around him so tightly, he feels like there’s a vise grip on his cock in the most magical way. Her teeth retract from his shoulder with a gasp and he reaches up to cup her jaw.

“Gods, I love you.”

She smiles at him and he sucks in a breath, because he finally sees the love in her eyes he used to see on a daily basis.

“I love you, too,” she tells him before her lips find his again.

He flips them so that he’s on top and she wraps her legs around his waist. She comes undone under him once more before he finally lets himself go, spilling inside of her with his head in the crook of her neck, a low grunt and her name on his lips. Instead of collapsing on top of her like he usually does, he instantly pulls out and falls to his side, pulling her to his chest.

With a soft giggle, she whispers, “You know, your weight isn’t going to harm the baby, either.”

“I’m not taking any bloody chances,” he pants out.

She kisses his chest before snuggling closer to him and when he falls asleep, he dreams of a little boy with his mother’s hair, and his blue eyes.

* * *

The next morning, they are sitting at a table in Granny’s waiting for Henry to come down from his shower when Killian puts his left arm around Emma’s shoulder as she eyes the menu and presses his lips against her temple.

“Find anything yet, love?”

She smells of his shampoo and it makes him smile. Apparently the smell of her normal coconut shampoo now makes her sick and she promptly asked him to get rid of it. Though it pains him to see her in such distress, he’s happy to be able to help her. She’s not keeping him in the dark anymore, every time something has bothered her since the moment she opened her eyes, she’s told him right away. He even held her while she cried when she knocked over his aftershave and spilt it all over the floor.

It’s… strange, seeing Emma like this. She’s always been so strong, in the entire time that he’s known her, he’s only seen her cry a handful of times, but now that she’s pregnant, it’s like any little thing is setting her off and she falls into a fit of tears over it. But no matter how strange it is, he knows he’ll always be there to be whatever she needs.

“I want pancakes and bacon,” she answers as she puts the menu down. “Oh! Do you think Granny will make me hardboiled eggs?”

He smirks and brushes his lips against her skin again.

“I think she will make you whatever you want.”

They both look up when Belle approaches them. “Good morning.”

“Belle,” Emma says with a smile. “Did something come up with the research?”

The brunette’s arms tighten around the book pulled to her chest.

“Uh, no, actually.” She shakes her head with a smile. “Congratulations to both of you, by the way, a baby that’s so exciting.”

Emma looks down at her stomach with a slight blush while he smiles at the librarian.

“Thank you, lass.”

Things between the two were strained at first, but it seems ever since he stayed to protect her and offered help with research, she’s found it in her heart to forgive him of his past discretions and look to him as an ally, and perhaps even a friend.

Again cementing his belief that she is far too good of a woman for the Crocodile.

Belle gives him a nod before she starts to ask Emma questions as he turns and takes a sip of his coffee. Never in his life did he expect to have people approach him to congratulate him on having a child.

It’s still such a shock to him. He’s going to be a father. Fear runs through him at the thought, but he pushes it down, there are more important things and all he should be worrying about is what Emma needs. There are many things he doesn’t know about pregnancy and he doesn’t want to harm her or their unborn child in anyway.

“Actually, this is for Killian.”

He lifts his head when he hears Belle say his name. She gives him a smile and hands him the book she was showing Emma. His brow goes together as he takes it.

“Emma has been pregnant before so she knows things… but I thought you may like something that could help you.”

He reads the title… **_‘What to Expect When You’re Expecting’_** before he looks over at Emma who gives him a shrug.

“It might give you a little insight, plus I know you enjoy reading.”

He takes the book and flips the cover open, eyes skimming the first few sentences before he looks up at Belle.

“Thank you,” he whispers.

She gives him a small smile before he turns back to it, barely noticing when the librarian leaves, he’s too busy reading the pages, but when Snow and Charming sit down across from them in the booth he finally looks up.

“What are you reading?” Snow asks.

Emma reaches over to close the cover and his eyes shoot up to her. When she tries to take it away, he puts his hand on the book and stops her.

“You can read this later.”

With a huff, he allows her to take it from him and she hands it to her mother.

“Oh!” Snow gasps. “I have this at home. I read it when we got our memories back last year. I wanted to see if it was accurate.”

He looks up at her with his eyes slightly wide. “Is it?”

Snow smiles and pushes the book back to Emma. “Yes. It has some really good information, I think it’ll help you a lot.”

Before he can reach for it again, Emma hides it behind her back.

“Henry will be down any minute. I thought we decided not to tell him yet?”

He presses his lips together and nods. He wants nothing more than to sit there and read the book cover to cover, but they’ve made the decision to wait to tell Henry. If the lad sees the book, he’ll figure it out right away.

“Aye, love,” he kisses her temple. “I’ll read the tale later.”

She gives him a small, grateful smile and turns back to her parents. He puts his arm back around her shoulder and sees the Charming’s staring at them.

“I take it you two talked?” David asks with a smile.

Killian lets out a chuckle while Emma blushes and looks down at her lap.

“And…?” Snow trails off.

He holds back his snort. Emma’s parents were definitely made for each other.

Looking at him shyly, he gives her a small nod of encouragement before she turns to her parents. “We’re having a baby.”

He smiles and tightens his arm around her, because it’s still hard to believe, hard to accept, that they are going to have a child. Every time he thinks about it, a ridiculous grin appears on his face and he struggles with getting it to go away.

David leans his elbows on the table and Emma sits up.

“Dad, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, and I’m sorry I asked mom to keep it from you... I just… I was scared. The last time I was pregnant I was alone and…”

The Prince reaches over the table and puts his hand over his daughters.

“Emma, you don’t have to explain it to me. They only thing I’m concerned about is your happiness.”

Her face twitches and Killian can see her eyes turn glassy. “But I know you were upset about me not telling Killian.”

David lets out a sigh. “I was upset that he learned from Zelena. No man should find out that he’s going to be a father by anyone other than the mother. But that doesn’t mean I was upset with you. If anyone can understand about keeping a pregnancy private, it’s your mother and I.”

Emma smiles at that and grips her father’s hand in her own.

“Thanks, dad.”

He gives her another smile before he lifts her hand to his lips.

Attempting to make the conversation less strained, Killian clears his throat and picks up his coffee. “Happy to be grandparents again?”

Snow nods with a big smile while David chuckles and says, “Always, but, as far as I’m concerned, this pregnancy happened through immaculate conception.”

Snow and Emma giggle while Killian pears over his mug at the Prince with a smirk. “Whatever helps you sleep at night, mate.”

David glares at him and he chuckles when Emma smacks him in the stomach.

“You two seemed to have made up,” David grumbles before he turns to his wife. “Does this mean I can’t kill him anymore?”

Killian snorts, while Snow rolls her eyes.

“That’s the father of your grandchildren you’re talking about. Be nice.”

His eyes snap up to the woman across from him and his mouth falls open. She’s just called him the father of their _grandchildren_ without any hesitation, it seems the former bandit has not only accepted the fact that he will be having a child with her daughter, but that Henry is his son, as well.

He can’t explain the joy it brings him.

“I went to him first in New York didn’t I?”

He clears his throat and tries to make his voice normal. “Aye, you did. I didn’t know you cared so much, mate.”

David rolls his eyes. “Okay, I mostly did it for Emma.”

Killian nods and puts his coffee mug down. “Ah, I figured.”

Emma gives him a pointed look and he smiles at her to let her know it’s all in good fun. He knows that her father truly doesn’t hate him anymore, but it’s fun to see him squirm. But when Snow glares at him, David lets out a sigh and puts his elbows on the table.

“And I guess you’ve…” he motions with his hand. “ _grown_ on me a bit.”

Killian places his arm down and leans forward.

“Hm?” David chuckles and shakes his head. Killian smiles wildly and lifts his hand in the air. “Well, I tend to have that effect on people.”

Both of the women giggle while David gives him a mock glare.

“Alright, don’t push it.”

Killian sits back in his seat and Emma pats him on the thigh. Though he’s jesting with David, it does make him extremely ecstatic to have his blessing. There was a time he thought they would never see eye to eye, but now, they will always be connected, always be a family. It makes him smile because David reminds him of Liam, and having him around is almost like Liam is with him again.

“Are you having any cravings?” Snow asks.

“This morning I really _really_ want hard boiled eggs. Where is the waitress by the way?” Emma mumbles as she looks around.

They all chuckle as Henry runs up to the table and sits next to them with a smile.

“Where’s LL at?”

“He’s at daycare.” Henry’s face drops and Snow leans forward. “I have to pick him up around lunch time, if you want to come play with him.”

The lads face lights up and he nods. Killian grins because he suddenly envisions Henry playing with his little brother or sister, he told him once back in New York how _cool_ it would be to have a younger sibling and he can only hope that he will feel the same way when they tell him about their child.

They order their food and the adults listen as Henry tells the Charming’s about their vacation to the beach. Emma rolls her eyes while her parents laugh at how they dragged her into the water. When their food arrives, Killian pushes his aside so that he may use his fork to cut Emma’s pancakes into pieces while she digs into her hard boiled eggs. When he’s finished, he brings his thumb to his mouth to lick away the stray syrup before he pushes the plate back over as she finishes up the last of her eggs.

“Do you want more, love?”

With her mouth full of pancakes, she nods and he motions to the waitress for more eggs while David keeps Henry distracted with questions on his schooling so the lad doesn’t notice the weirdness in his mother’s breakfast choice. He’s chewing his own breakfast when he sees Snow stop Emma from pouring herself another cup of coffee. The two women stare at each other for a couple seconds before she lets out a sigh and goes for her cup of water.

He eyes Snow who mouths to him ‘it’s in the book’ and he makes a mental note to look for it later. Emma is on her third bowl of hard boiled eggs and he’s halfway through his breakfast when Ruby walks up with a grimace on her face.

“Hey Ho… uh, Killian. Um, there’s someone outside who wants to speak to you.”

He can feel everyone look at him. He wants to ask who, but he knows if she’s not outright saying, it’s someone they can’t mention in front of Henry. With a nod, he moves to stand as Emma looks up at him with concern in her eyes.

Leaning down, he gives her a quick peck on the forehead. “I’ll be right back, love. Don’t fret.”

He pats Henry’s shoulder and follows Ruby to the back of the diner, but before he can walk out she stops him.

“You might want to put on your hook.” His brows raise and she just nods. “Trust me.”

He takes the hook out of his jacket and switches it before he walks out the back. Killian lets out a huff of annoyance when he sees Mr. Smee standing there fidgeting and approaches him. He can feel his entire body change into the domineering Pirate Captain he hasn’t been in over a year and his mouth twitches at how normal it feels.

“You know how much I abhor being interrupt, Mr. Smee. What is it that’s so urgent?”

The short man gives a small nod. “It’s just, um, me and the men were talking about how we haven’t seen much of you since we all ended up back here.”

He chuckles and takes a step back. Smee is right. Since he’s been back, he’s only seen his crew three times, he’s meant to visit them more, but he just hasn’t found the time, but he can’t let Smee know that.

“Is there a point to that rather odd observation?”

“What’s keeping us from crewing up again and hitting the high seas, getting back to pirating?”

Killian arches an eyebrow at him.

“You mean other than being attacked and turned into flying monkeys? Have you forgotten? There’s no safe passage out of this town. You’ve already been a rodent, Mr. Smee. Does life as a simian interest you, as well?”

“Of course there’s safe passage. We could outrun them!” Smee cries out.

He snorts and shakes his head. “Not with that torso of yours.”

Smee sighs. “If we had a fast enough ship. The Jolly Roger, for instance,” Killian goes stiff. “You still haven’t told me where she is… she was here and then she vanished.”

“What happened to her isn’t important.”

“Because you were the one that summoned her away? Is our ship okay? What… what happened to it?’

“ _My_ ship. All you need to know, Mr. Smee, is that the Jolly Roger isn’t here. So there will be no outrunning of anything.”

Smee shakes his head and he starts to fidget again. “I mean, what if we found another ship? Anyone down by the docks…”

He glares at the short man. “Mr. Smee, I’ve tried letting you down easy. Now let me be more direct. I have no intention of leaving this town.”

“Captain,” Smee starts. “I agree with you. This place has its bright spots. I have never tried anything quite like frozen yogurt before. But the Wicked Witch is here, and with that sort of danger, what possible reason do you have to stay?”

It’s clear the announcement of Emma’s pregnancy hasn’t reached his crew's ears yet or else Smee wouldn’t be questioning him. They both look when the back door opens and Emma emerges, concern clearly written all over his face. Killian turns back to Smee with a growl and steps up into his face.

“My reasons are my own. Question them again at your peril.”

Smee’s face goes pale and his cowardice first mate nods before he moves back.

“Sir.”

Smee slinks away and he turns to Emma with a smile, the demanding pirate demeanor washing away to be replaced with the man he’s become.

“Didn’t he used to be a rat?” Emma asks when he walks up.

He looks back at Smee. “Aye,” he turns to her. “In many ways, he still is. Checking up on me, Swan?”

She gives him a shy smile and shakes her head. “I just wanted to make sure everything is okay… What did he want?”

He pulls her into his arms and kisses the tip of her nose. “It matters not. Now, what’s the real reason you came out here?”

She gives him a sheepish smile. “Um, my mother just reminded me that I have an appointment with Whale today to figure out my due date. He’s going to give me my first ultrasound and I was wondering if you wanted to come.”

A stupid grin spreads across his face and he’s once again thankful for the knowledge Regina bestowed into his brain because he knows exactly what an ultrasound is.

“Nothing would make me happier, Emma.”


	25. Chapter Twenty Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> every week, i’m amazed by all of your responses to this not so little story of mine. as i’ve said many times before, i love interacting with all of you! you guys make me laugh and smile constantly! but, without further ado, here is chapter 25, i hope you like it :D

** Chapter Twenty-Five **

Killian stares at the contraption in front of him as he taps his lips with his fingers. It looks like more like a torture device than a chair. Emma sits on it at an angle with her legs spread and her feet propped up on the metal arms at the end. She’s wearing a cloth gown and her lap is covered by a paper sheet.

Not for the first time that morning, he wishes that he didn’t allow her to leave the book Belle gave him back in their room. He plans to have it read by the end of the week so he’s fully aware of all things they might face.

If only the memories Regina gave him when he left had some knowledge of what was to come.

“Killian, will you please come stand up by my head? I don’t need Whale coming in here and freaking out because Captain Hook keeps standing over him while he’s trying to do his job.”

He lets out a huff and stands next to her. “Tell me again why it must be done _this_ way.”

When she explained to him that she will be getting the procedure done vaginally, he just about fell to the floor. The only person allowed near that area was _him_ , and he sure doesn’t want to see another man there even if he is a doctor.

“Because it’s too early in the pregnancy do it the regular way. This is just to tell us when I’m due.”

“And it won’t… hurt the babe?”

She gives him a small smile and pulls his hand to her lips for a soft kiss.

“No,” she places his hand over her stomach and he feels himself start to calm down. “It’s perfectly safe. We’re not even going to be able to tell the sex of the baby yet, it’s too early. Like I said, this is just to give us a definite on how far along I am and when I’m due.”

His hand tightens over her stomach. “Do we want to know the sex?”

She blinks twice before tilting her head. “Um, well, I guess we can discuss it…”

“Did you learn it while pregnant with Henry?”

Her teeth chew at her bottom lip and she shakes her head. “No. I already knew I was going to give him up for adoption so I thought it would be better if I didn’t know.”

He leans down and kisses her when he sees tears form in her eyes. He didn’t think about how this might be affecting her, the last time she was pregnant, she had no intentions of her keeping her child, now it’s the complete opposite.

“Would you like for us to know?”

His thumb rubs against her stomach and she shrugs her shoulders.

“I don’t know… maybe? It might make things easier. But right now I’m still trying to wrap my head around the fact that you’re here and not heading for the ocean, so let’s just take it one step at a time.”

He kisses her again before he rests his forehead against hers. He no longer blames her for her doubts, from the short passage he read in that book, it told him that emotions run high for women that are with child and all of her past memories of being pregnant are coming back along with her past fears of being alone.

“I told you, Swan. I’m not going anywhere. I’m afraid you’re stuck with me now.”

She lets out a watery chuckle and shakes her head. He smiles when she reaches up to cup his face, her thumb rubbing over the scar on his cheek.

“I love you.”

His lips form into a ridiculous grin again and instead of answering her with words, he gives her another kiss. He wants nothing more than to take her right there, perhaps the chair might work to his advantage, but Whale walks in and interrupts them before he even has a chance to suggest it to her.

“Emma, Hook, good to see you.”

Pink forms on her cheeks when he pulls away and she gives the doctor a smile. He stays quiet as the two talk, but when Whale’s hands disappear under the sheet covering her legs he goes stiff. She pats his hand in reassurance, but his jaw still clenches, and when she flinches, he growls and raises his hook slightly toward the doctor.

“It’s fine,” she whispers. “Just… strange, stow your twitching hook.”

He rolls his eyes at her but gives a smirk when he sees Whale look back at it from time to time. The doctor taps on the keyboard in front of him with his right hand and clears his throat.

“Ah, here we go.”

His eyes move to the screen, it looks like a blurry mess to him and he’s not sure exactly what it’s supposed to be.

“There,” Whale points.

Killian leans forward. “What?”

“You see the circle right there?”

He squints, the entire screen is filled with blurs and circles it’s hard to tell which he is referring to. Emma sits up and puts her hand over his.

“Sweetie, look,” she points to a tiny round bean in the middle of the large black circle. “Do you see this little bean right here?”

“Aye?”

She looks back at him with a smile. “That’s our baby.”

His eyes snap back to the screen, the little bean moves and he feels his heart flutter in his chest. He can’t take his eyes off of it and unconsciously leans forward to try and get a better look. He’s broken out of his thoughts when Emma giggles. He looks at her to find that he’s practically laying across her stomach in order to get closer. He moves back and mumbles an apology before his eyes move back to the screen. She reaches up to pat his cheek and his lips twitch.

“From your measurements, Emma, it looks like you’re about nine weeks along, actually.”

“Wow,” she gasps. “Really?”

Whale nods as he works on the computer some more, while Killian continues to stare. It amazes him that the little object on the screen is his child, he feels a sense of longing run through him and his hand tightens on her stomach.

“By this I’m going to say your due date is November 2nd.”

When he’s finally able to form words, he whispers, “We’re having a baby.”

Emma giggles and kisses his cheek while his eyes stay on their little bean.

“Now, it’s still early. But we might get a bit of luck. Shall we see if we can hear the heartbeat?”

Whale moves his hand around the keyboard some more before he hits a final button. The room suddenly fills with a sound he’s never heard before making his jaw drop, because it sounds so beautiful and makes his entire body sing.

Killian blinks and turns to Emma. She has tears in her eyes and he can’t help but smile, her face lights up and he moves forward to press his lips to hers. She giggles again and reaches up to cup his face. When he pulls back, he isn’t aware that he’s crying until she wipes his cheek with her fingers. A watery chuckle escapes his throat and he leans his forehead against her own. He can’t remember ever feeling so happy in his entire life, and it’s all because of her.

His happy ending.

* * *

They walk up the stairs to her parent’s loft to find Regina about to knock on the door.

“Hey,” Emma calls out to her.

Regina turns around and gives them a tight lipped smile. “Emma, Hook. How did things go at the doctors?”

With a big smile, Killian hands her the sonogram photo, he’s been staring at it ever since they left the hospital. Regina takes the print out and a small smile forms on her face.

“I’m due November 2nd, which makes me about nine weeks.”

The Mayor looks up at them and hands the print out back to Killian, who puts it in his back pocket. “Congratulations. Have you… have you told Henry yet?”

Emma lets out a sigh. “I thought it might be better if we wait until he gets his memories back.”

Regina brushes her hair away from her shoulder. “Yes, I’ve thought about that. I think it’s time we start working on your magic, Emma.”

She starts to squirm as she murmurs, “I don’t know…”

“Though it pains me,” Killian starts which makes Regina to roll her eyes. “I agree with Regina. It’s the first reasonable plan I’ve heard since this all began.”

She turns to him in surprise. “Really?”

“Magic is a part of you, Swan. Don’t forget…” His hand reaches up to hover over her chest. “I was there when Cora tried to steal your heart, and when Zelena tried what she did at Granny’s. I saw the power inside of you. It’s about time you embraced it. It’s what makes you the Savior.”

“He’s right,” Regina cuts in. “But if we do this, we do this my way. This isn’t drinking stale coffee at a stakeout or… whatever you did as a bail bondsperson. This is a way of life. You have to fully commit to it.”

She looks over at Killian who arches his eyebrow at her before she turns back to Regina.

“Not a problem.”

“Good,” Regina says with a nod. “We’ll start tomorrow.”

They walk into the loft to see David and Henry laughing together while Snow rocks her little brother in her arms.

“Hey, kid. What did you do all day?”

“Had the best day ever!” Henry calls out. “David let me drive his truck!”

Her mouth drops open while Killian chuckles next to her. She throws him a look and he coughs to try and cover his laugh before he reaches up to hide his smile with his hand.

“You let him what?!” Regina gasps and Henry looks over at her in confusion. “As Mayor, I can’t let an unlicensed, underage driver on the streets of Storybrooke.”

Emma is the one that has to cover her mouth that time and turns to hide her face in Killian’s shoulder.

“As Mayor, you might want to throw a little money at road repair,” David winces.

Henry lips go together in a tight smile while Killian’s shoulders start to shake and Emma lets out a little groan.

“Excuse me?” Regina hisses.

Snow shakes her head and walks to her room to put Leo down in his playpen.

“Nothing,” David says quickly and walks into the kitchen.

“This is a terrible mistake!”

Emma lifts her head and takes a deep breath.

“She’s right.” Killian is still chuckling and she smacks him in the arm. “Someone could have been seriously hurt.”

“Only if you’re a mailbox,” Snow whispers toward them before she sits down at the kitchen island.

“It was so much fun!” Henry calls out as David hands him a can of soda.

“What can I say? I’ve got a reckless, carefree… _fun_ side.” David says with a smile.

Killian snorts and Emma smacks him in the arm again. Her parents had their feelings hurt a couple days ago when Henry preferred to spend time with Killian over them so she knows exactly why her father did what he did.

“And how was… our friend?” Snow asks. “Everything go okay?”

David and Henry clink their soda cans together and Emma rolls her eyes.

“Um,” she looks at Killian before she turns back to the group. “Yeah.”

Snow smiles and her eyes go big with happiness. “Well, maybe our luck’s about to change. Dinner at Granny’s?”

“Can I drive?” Henry asks.

“No!” Both Emma and Regina cry out.

Killian and David both chuckle before they start to pack up to leave.

Later that night, Emma walks out of the shower to find Killian lounging on their bed reading the book Belle gave him. His legs are crossed over each other and he uses his hook to turn the pages. She rubs the towel over her head before hanging on the back of the door.

“Love, it says here that it’s not good to consume caffeine.”

She sighs and climbs into the bed next to him, her entire body aches and all she wants to do is fall asleep for days.

“I can have _some_ caffeine. But, yeah, not a lot.”

She can feel his eyes on her but she yawns before she can make a comment.

“Not your typical amount. Perhaps you can switch to herbal tea? Also, it says here you should move around some more, Storybrooke isn’t that large, we can walk to the places we want to go.”

Her head hits the pillow and she has to hold back her groan of frustration. “All I want to do right now is sleep. I’ll make sure I move more tomorrow.”

“Were you ill at all today? Keeping yourself hydrated is important.”

She snuggles into her pillow and yawns again. “No. But I’ll be sure to let you know if I am.”

“Are you breasts sore, because it says—”

“Killian!” She snaps, cutting him off. “You do know I’ve been pregnant before, that boy that’s in the other room? I carried him around for nine months.”

When he doesn’t respond, she opens her eyes to see him staring at the book with a blank stare and a sudden wave of guilt rushes over her. Yes, she’s been through this before, but it’s his first time and he’s only trying to help. Moving closer to him, she sneaks up under his right arm, and lies her head on his bare chest.

“I’m sorry,” she mumbles. “I know you’re trying to help, I’m just tired. We didn’t do much today, but I feel completely exhausted.”

He kisses the top of her head and lays the book down in his lap.

“S’alright, love. It’s normal… from what it says here.”

She burrows herself into his chest. “I’ve had some heartburn, too…”

He picks the book up and flips a page before he speaks, “Would you like me to run out and get you something?”

Another yawn escapes her and she shakes her head. “No. We can pick something up tomorrow. I just really _really_ want to sleep.”

He pulls her closer to him and she hums with a small smile.

“Rest, darling.”

She mumbles to him not to stay up too late but she’s asleep before she can hear his response. She wakes up three times that night to go to the bathroom, and each time, he awakes with her. Despite her previous irritation at his constant questioning, she has to admit, it’s nice to have someone who cares for her this time around.

The next day, they are just about to head upstairs to her parent’s loft with Henry when her anxiety kicks in. She’s supposed to go practice her magic with Regina because the Wicked Witch wants their unborn child. A child she’s not even sure she will know how to raise, because she didn’t even raise her first child. She doesn’t know the first thing about being a parent, or even what it means to _have_ parent’s. Sure, she has hers now, but when she was little, the concept of parent’s was foreign to her.

“Swan, what’s wrong?”

Her breathing starts to pick up and her heart is pounding in her chest. Tears form in her eyes as her body starts to tremble.

“Mom? Are you okay?”

“Lad, go upstairs to David and Mary Margaret.”

“What’s going on?”

“We’ll be up in a minute.”

“But what’s wrong with—”

“Henry!” Killian barks. “Please, just go upstairs.”

There’s silence before she hears the front door open and close. Killian turns her to him and takes a step closer.

“Emma…”

“Killian, how am I going to do this?”

Her eyes snap up to his and she finds his face filled with confusion. “Do what, love?”

“Have this baby? I’ve never raised a child before. Those memories I have of keeping Henry? They are Regina’s, not mine! And Zelena is trying to get… how am I supposed to protect the baby? I can’t…” she starts to shake her head. “This is too big.”

Her chest starts to heave up and down and she can feel the panic rising up rapidly, there is no way she’s going to be able to protect her child from the Wicked Witch.

His hand cups her face and he rubs his thumb across her cheek. “You’re going to work on your magic today with Regina and it will help.”

She shakes her head again. “Help with what? What if it doesn’t work? What if I can’t learn everything I need to learn?”

“You will.”

“You don’t know that!” she cries out. “I can’t…”

Deep gasps start escape past her lips and she can feel the start of a panic attack coming and she knows there’s only one thing she can do.

Placing his hand and prosthetic on her arms, he tells her softly, “Baby... breathe.”

She takes a step back and continues to shake her head. “No, I can’t. I have to go…”

Turning, she tries to run, but he stops her and forces her to turn to him.

“Emma, stop. _Talk_ to me.”

Shaking her head, she reaches up to fiddle with the ring on her necklace. “No. There is _nothing_ we can do. Talking isn’t going to do anything!”

He lets out a huff and holds her by the arms again. “This isn’t about bloody talking, Emma. This is about _you_ putting your faith in _me_ , in our future. The Wicked Witch won’t get anywhere near the bean, I promise you.”

A tear runs down her cheek and she breathes out, “We’re both orphans, Killian. You really think we can do this? Defeat Zelena and live some white-picket-fence-life?”

His lips brush against hers before he reaches up to put her chin in between his thumb and forefinger.

“I do. I’ll never stop fighting for our family, all you have to do is trust me.”

She feels another tear trickle down her face before she leans her forehead against his. Her body starts to calm down and the panic subsides. It helps, having him near, having him so close, to talk her down… it’s one of the many things she loves about him.

Letting out a stuttering breath, she falls into his arms.

“I’m sorry,” she mumbles against his shoulder. “We were walking and it all just hit me.”.

“S’fine, love.” Pulling back, he rubs his hand up and down her back. “Just try to remember you’re not alone in this. I’m here, for whatever it is you may need.”

Before she can answer, David comes walking out.

“Hey, everything okay?”

She wipes her face as her and Killian take a step away from each other.

“Yeah,” she answers. “Just… pregnancy hormones.”

Her father gives her an understanding nod before he says, “Henry’s upstairs, he’s worried.”

Sighing, she turns back to Killian. “He’s not going to let us go much longer like this.”

“Aye,” he breathes out. “You’ll work on your magic with Regina and we’ll figure it all out. Perhaps I should go apologize. I do abhor the idea of spending an entire day with the young lad angry with me.”

Both Emma and David snort before they make their way inside.

* * *

It takes all day and lots of sundaes before Henry isn’t mad at Killian anymore. He tells her how Henry is accusing them of lying to him, keeping things from him and how he just wants to go home.

Emma sighs at that and they talk about how to possibly get his memories back.

“Perhaps working on your magic some more?” he whispers to her at night, his fingers brush against her stomach and she lets out a little hum. “How was it with Regina?”

She bites her lip and tries not to let her body go tense. If he finds out what Regina did to her earlier that day just to push her magic, he’s going to have a heart attack, but she’s promised not to lie to him anymore.

“Swan…”

_Damn him and his ability to read her._

Letting out a sigh, she rolls until she is on her back instead of snuggling into his chest.

“It was nothing. Just a little push to make my—”

“What the bloody hell did she do?”

His voice is dark and demanding, and a year ago, she would have bitched him out and ignored him. But she’s learning, it’s not that she _can’t_ do it, she _shouldn’t_ do it, this child is half of Killian and what happens to her concerns him as well.

She explains to him about the bridge collapsing and before she’s even finished, he’s pushing himself out of the bed, frantically pulling his jeans up over his legs.

“Where are you going?” she asks with an exhausted sigh.

“I’m going to have a nice little chat with the Queen.”

She moves to kneel up on the bed and shakes her head.

“No you’re not. She didn’t do anything wrong,” He quaffs as he throws his button down shirt over his shoulders. “She had to push me to make my powers emerge. It’s the only time they’ve ever worked.”

His face turns hard and he clenches his jaw. She swallows and tries to concentrate on what’s happening, but the way he looks has her incredibly turned on. He’s standing at the end of their bed, feet bare, jeans undone, and shirt unbuttoned to reveal his tight stomach and the dark hair on his chest. She licks her lips and stares at him while he lets out a little growl.

“Don’t look at me like that.”

Her lips twitch and she moves to the edge of the bed with a smile. “Like what?”

He rolls his eyes and fixes his collar. “Like you want to devour me.”

“Maybe I do.”

“She can _not_ do things that, Emma,” he growls. “What if something would have gone wrong?”

“The whole point of her teaching me is so I can learn how to control my power and it worked. Now please, come back to bed. I would very much like to devour you.”

He doesn’t move closer to her but he doesn’t continue to dress either, so she puts it in the win column.

“Emma.”

“Killian.”

He lets out a huff and runs his hand through his hair, making it messier and making him look even more irresistible. “You are with child now—”

“Just because I’m pregnant, doesn’t mean I can’t do things. This isn’t my first rodeo, _Hook_. I’ve been pregnant before, did it all by myself!”

“Aye,” he starts with a sigh. “You did, but this time you’re not by yourself, and I refuse to have the damn _Evil Queen_ put my family in harm’s way just to get her kicks. We all know how powerful you are, Emma. You don’t need to be pushed to learn your powers.” She opens her mouth but he turns and walks out of the room. Before she can move to follow, he comes back in with the scented candle she bought at the store. “Light this candle.”

Pinching her brow together, she shakes her head, “I can’t, I’ve only just learned…”

He takes a step forward and holds the candle up. “Aye, you can. I believe in you, Emma. I know you can do this. Just try.”

Her heart skips a beat because she can feel the belief he has in her radiating off of him and it warms her to the core. He gives her a reassuring smile with a nod before she presses her lips together and stares at the candle.

She concentrates on her magic like Regina told her, it prickles her skin, and she can feel the hair on the back of her neck stand up. There’s a slight gust of wind, but the candle stays unlit and she lets out a huff of frustration.

“Hey,” her eyes flicker up to him. “I love you.”

Her eyelashes flutter and a sense of calm wash over her, seconds later, the wick on the candle flickers and a flame sparks. Her eyes widen, and when she looks up at him, he has a _dazzling_ grin on his face before he steps forward, wraps his hooked arm around her and kisses her senseless.

He _giggles_ against her lips and she can’t help but answer back with one of her own, before he puts the candle down on the dresser and pulls her back into his arms.

“I told you.”

She breathes out a chuckle. “Well, now all we need is for you to be there and tell me you love me every time I need to use my magic.”

“I think I can manage that,” he murmurs against her lips before he steals another kiss.

“Will you come back to bed now?”

With his tongue running over his bottom teeth, he smirks. “I do seem to recall you saying something about ‘devouring’?”

She smirks and grips his opened shirt in her hands.

“Keep this on,” she whispers and his eyebrow arches.

She doesn’t give him a chance to respond before she’s pulling him to her. By the time they are finished, the candle is gone and the wick is black.  


	26. Chapter Twenty-Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys know the deal, you're all awesome, I love you all and double line breaks mean POV change ;p

** Chapter Twenty-Six **

Emma sits at the table in her parent’s loft with her right hand on her forehead. She has a terrible headache and if she has to listen to her father and Killian continue to argue about how to build the new crib Ashley bought for Leo, she might scream.

“I’ve seen enemy battle plans that were easier to decode than this.”

She lets out a sigh and lifts her head to see her father sitting on the ground with the instructions held out before him with Killian kneeling to the side of him. There are wooden pieces all over the ground and it looks more like a pile ready for a fire than a crib.

“Aye,” Killian answers before he reaches forward and takes hold of the edge of the paper. “’Take screws E with washer’s D through bar C using wrench F, which is…”

David picks up each piece as Killian reads but stops and leans in closer to the instructions.

“Not provided,” He reads with a sigh.

She looks over at her mother who gives her a sad smile while she feeds Leo and lets out a huff.

“Why don’t you just call Marco? He’s really good at this sort of thing.”

“No!” Both Killian and David holler out in offense.

“We’re fine,” her father insists and she can’t help but roll her eyes.

“I’ve spent centuries rebuilding parts of the Jolly, I think the Prince and I can manage a crib, love.”

Holding a spoon in front of Leo, her mother looks over at her with a smile, “It is good practice for your future.”

“Right you are, milady,” he answers with a smile. “We’re going to need one for the bean eventually.”

Her lips twitch into a smile. Ever since she’s had her sonogram, Killian has taken to calling the baby ‘bean’ and it’s just about the most adorable thing she’s ever heard.

She’s twelve weeks pregnant and he’s been nothing but supportive and caring. He’s always there to make sure she has everything she needs and wants. He’s dealt with her random breakdowns over something as little as not being able to find her earring and her outbursts at him for unnecessary things like him using the ‘wrong bath towel’.

Not once does he yell or give her attitude, he just answers with the same three words whether it’s her asking for something to eat or her asking him to stop breathing so loud.

_“As you wish.”_

But now her head is killing her and she’s trying not to let it show because even though it’s nice to have someone pampering during her pregnancy instead of a correctional officer asking as she walks by in a gruff voice _“Everything okay, today?”_ , it’s also somewhat annoying.

Everything she attempts to put in her mouth he eyes and she just _knows_ he’s rereading a passage from one of his _many_ books he has now on pregnancy, _thank you Belle,_ from his crazy photogenic memory and asking her very personal questions in front of a room full of people.

_“Are your breasts sore?”_

_“How is your saliva?”_

_“Any weight gain?”_

_“Gas discomfort or discharge?”_

She almost punched him when he asked that in front of the dwarves.

Plus, it’s just a headache, it’s nothing she can’t handle. That’s why she quietly makes her way over to the bathroom to try and take one of the pain relievers she knows are in the medicine cabinet while he’s distracted with her father.

But again, she underestimates the eyes he apparently has in the back of his head because just as she’s about to open the pill bottle, he’s knocking on the door seconds before he enters.

That’s another thing, unless she tells him to _not_ come in, he’s giving her zero privacy even in the bathroom. The other night she was peeing and he walked right in to ask her where his wallet was. His sense of boundaries has become nonexistent.

“Are you alright, Swan? Feeling sick?”

With a sigh she shakes her head. “No. I just have a headache.”

He takes a step forward with his brow together, but when he sees the bottle his eyes go wide and he snatches it out of her hands.

“Love, you can’t take these. It’s not good for the bean. Where does it hurt? Perhaps your blood sugar is low, are you hungry?”

She rolls her eyes and has to hold back the urge to stomp her foot. She just wants her headache to go away and possibly lie down, but she knows she can’t do the second, and now he’s stopping her from doing the first, as well.

“I just have a damn headache!” she snaps. “All I want is to take something.”

She ignores the voice in her head that tells her she could also go for a bag of Doritos.

“I’ll run to the store and fetch you Tylenol,” he answers back without hesitation and puts the bottle of aspirin back in the medicine cabinet.

Guilt washes over her because, once again, he doesn’t even react to the attitude she throws at him and offers to run out to get something she wants. With a sigh she pulls him closer and he wraps his arms around her.

“No,” she mumbles into his chest. “You promised dad you would help him with the crib.”

“But your head, love…”

“I’ll be fine. Maybe after you’re done you could give me one of your neck massages?”

For only having one hand, he gives the best massages she’s ever had.

Smiling down at her, he kisses her nose and answers with, “As you wish.”

Her heart melts and she places a soft peck on his chin. When they walk back out her parents are having a little bit of an argument.

“Do we have to build the crib? I think he’s sleeping perfectly fine in the bed with us.”

David lets out a sigh and puts the instructions back down on the ground.

“We can’t have him sleep with us all the time, Snow.”

She watches as her mother’s arms tighten around her little brother.

“But what if Zelena…” Snow trails off as Regina walks into the loft holding a brown chest.

David stands and walks over to his wife. “This crib is a statement. We’re not going to lose another baby.”

Snow’s eyes flicker over to Emma and she can see the turmoil in them. It’s clear she’s thinking about how they lost her after she was born and she’s scared the same will happen with Leo. It’s obvious he was her first choice, and there is no telling she will attempt to go after him again if she gets tired of waiting for Emma to give birth.

Her hand instinctively goes to her stomach. It’s easy to forget that the real baby Zelena is after is her own and they still have no idea on how to protect it. Sure, the baby is protected while inside of her, but in no time at all, she’ll be giving birth and how will they protect their little bean then?

She jumps when Killian’s hand covers her own and his lips brush against her temple.

“I’ll never stop fighting,” he whispers to her and it instantly makes her feel better.

Whenever she seems to be having a moment, like always, he can tell and he whispers that to her as a reminder that he’s by her side.

“And, thanks to your daughter and I, you won’t.” Regina explains. “Emma, come on, I’m going to show you how to do a protection spell.”

She’s been practicing her magic with Regina for the past couple weeks, and though she has a better handle on it, sometimes, she still loses a little bit of control. Just the other night, the coffee pot exploded when Snow wouldn’t let her have another cup.

There’s no doubt that she has power, raw power, Regina tells her, but it’s useless unless she knows how to wield it.

“What about the Inn?” Snow asks.

Emma bites her lip. Her parents have been dropping not so subtle hints at them ever since the announcement of the pregnancy for the three to move into the loft, but with Henry still not having his memories back, there really isn’t anything they can do.  

“We can do one there after we get finished up here,” she says with a shrug.

“Or you three could just move in with us,” David explains as he walks back over to the unbuilt crib.

“Eager to have me live you, mate?”

Killian’s voice is filled with humor and dripping with sarcasm, but when her father looks up at him with a high eyebrow, she can see he turn serious.

“Eager to have my family under the same roof where I can protect them? Yes.”

The two men exchange a nod and Emma tries not to let the tears that are forming in her eyes fall down her face. She leaves them to go back to building the crib and walks over to Regina to put up the protection spell.

* * *

Two nights later, she’s awoken by Killian whimpering in his sleep. She reaches over to try and shake him awake, but it doesn’t work.

“Killian?”

His head starts to whip back and forth and she can see a layer of sweat forming on his brow. She lifts herself up so that she is perched on her knees leaning over him and quickly grabs his hook from under the pillow to throw it on the floor, because she knows the first thing he’s going to do when he wakes up is go for it.

“Killian, wake up!”

Her hands move to his shoulders and she gives them a sharp tug. His eyes open a second later and just as she'd suspected, his right hand reaches under the pillow. When she grabs his wrist, he lets out a growl.

“Hook!”

His head snaps over, a snarl still on his lips, but as soon as his gaze connects with her, his entire face softens and he lets out a breath of air. Before she can say anything, he sits up and wraps his arms around her.

“Emma!”

She opens her mouth to speak, but he’s squeezing her so tightly, she’s finding it hard to even breathe. He pulls back and his hand immediately goes to her stomach.

“You are alright? You and the bean are— Henry,” he stops and looks up at her in horror before he quickly moves her off of him and jumps out of the bed. She scrambles to follow and finds him out in the living room kneeling by their sons bed.

“Killian?” Henry asks in a sleep filled mumble.

“Aye. Are you okay?”

Wrapping her arms around herself to ward of the chill, she asks in a hushed whisper, “What are you doing?”

“I’m fine,” their son yawns. “What’s wrong?”

Killian shakes his head and lets out a sigh before he leans forward and kisses Henry’s forehead.

“Nothing,” he stands up and grabs his hand. “Come. I want you to sleep with your mother and I.”

She takes a step forward. “Killian, what’s going on? Let him sleep.”

Henry mumbles a reply before he shuffles up off of the couch bed. Killian helps him walk into their bedroom as she watches in stunned silence. She wants to ask him about his nightmare, but with Henry being there, she’s going to have to wait.

When she lays down on the bed, Killian wraps his arms around both of them and rests his hand on her stomach. Her eyes stay glued to him until he finally looks at her, but instead of giving her a hint as to what’s wrong, he presses his hand into her stomach more and whispers to her.

“I love you.”

His voice sounds so scared, she puts her hand over his and answers him the only way she knows how.

“We love you, too.”

* * *

They are making their way to Regina’s house to try a spell to contact her mother about Zelena when Emma notices how off Killian is. Lately, her emotions have been like night and day, one minute she’s extremely happy to the point where all she wants to do is giggle and laugh, and the next she’s in the worst mood ever. But it’s normal, what isn’t normal, is for Killian’s mood to be dampened.

All day he’s been acting weird and she thinks it has something to do with his nightmare the night before. But she hasn’t said anything, mostly because he’s been dealing with her mood swings constantly, but it’s really starting to worry her.

They are just walking through the front door when she sees Killian eyeing a bushel of apples in the dining room and she decides to crack a joke.

“I’d watch out for the apples in this house.”

He helps her take her coat off and mumors, “Aye.”

Putting her hand on his arm, she stops him before he can walk off. “It was a joke. Where’s your sense of humor?”

“It left when the witch arrived,” he replies dryly.

She reaches up to cup his cheek and his eyes flicker close for a brief second. “We’re going to take care of that. Regina said she has a plan.”

His lips lift to a brief smile and he nods. “I’m sure she does.”

“Killian, what is wrong? You’ve been acting strange.” A puff of air escapes his lips and she feels his thumb make its way under her shirt to rub her stomach.

“I’m fine.”

Fingers lace between her own and she’s being pulled into Regina’s dining room before she can call him out on his lie.

“Okay, what about ‘Eva’ after my mother?”

“I don’t know how well that’ll work with a boy,” David says with a shrug.

“It may not be a boy,” Snow says with a smile.

“What are you talking about?” Emma asks hesitantly as Killian pushes her chair in for her.  

“Baby names.”

Her eyes go wide and she sees Killian stop for a quick second before he sits down fully.

“Um… why?” she asks.

David lets out a sigh. “Your mother seems to believe that we are having a granddaughter, and, although a little girl would be fabulous, we all know it’s a boy.” When she doesn’t say anything, her father turns to Killian. “Tell her, Hook.”

With shock, she turns to see him reach up to scratch the back of his ear, when he doesn’t say anything, a noise escapes from the back of her throat.

Her question comes stuttering out, “Do you think we are having a boy?”

His cheeks tint and his shoulder lifts along with the corners of his mouth.

“Well, your father and I were talking...” She crosses her arms over her chest and presses her tongue into her cheek while she stares. “I might have a feeling that the bean is a little lad.”

“I do, too,” David cuts in. “It’s just a special skill…”

Snow snorts out a laugh. “You thought _Emma_ was going to be a boy.”

Her eyes go even wider and she looks over at her father who looks embarrassed.

“Thank gods you were wrong there, mate,” Killian chuckles.

David sighs and sits back with a smug smile. “I don’t know. If Emma _had_ been a boy, I think I would have one less pirate in my life.”

“Not what you were saying before, Dave,” he mocks with a wink which makes both females giggle.

Their conversation ends when Regina walks in with a tray.

“Sorry to keep you waiting. I was making this special tea,” she explains as she pours liquid into the cups before them on the table.

David leans forward to take a glass and Regina yells at him that it’s a poison. Emma sees Killian eye her cup, and very slowly, push it an inch away from her. She holds back from rolling her eyes and just shakes her head.

It’s then she knows without a doubt, that if he could, he would strap her to his chest in a baby Bjorn just to keep her safe.

Once the conjuring turns into a bust, Killian and Emma make their way back to Granny’s for something to eat, because even though she ate right before they left, she’s hungry again.

Starving, actually.

And the only thing she wants is a grilled cheese with relish and honey mustard. Killian is still being silent and she’s trying not to let it get to her. She tells him she’s going to work on her magic while she waits for her food and he barely looks up from the new pregnancy book he checked out from the library.

She turns back to the counter and squeezes her eyes shut. It’s been getting easier, her handling it, ever since he first helped her, whenever she’s struggling, she thinks back to that and it always comes to her. After a couple of seconds, she feels the magic course through her and when she opens her eyes, the mug that was in front of her is gone.

“Boom!” she cries out in excitement.

Turning around, she giggles when she sees the cocoa on top of the book Killian is reading.

“Granny’s to go,” she says with a smile as she walks over and sits across from him in the booth. “I should open a franchise.”

He gives her a forced smile and moves the mug to the side. “It’s impressive.”

She puts her arms on the table and looks down at his reading.

“So… you think we’re having a boy?”

He lets out a soft chuckle and the tips of his ears turn pink.

“It was just a conversation, honestly.”

“Well, we’ll know next month for sure.”

He gives her a tiny smile and it makes her feel better. They came to the decision that they _would_ find out the sex of the baby, because given that Zelena wants their child, they feel it might be best to be prepared.

“Have you thought about names?” she asks softly.

With a puff of air passing his lips, he pulls his flask from his pocket to take a sip.

“Don’t you think it might be a tad too early for that?”

Her brow goes together and she tilts her head.

“Okay, what is _wrong_ with you? Last week I had to drag you out of the baby section because you wanted to buy clothes already and now you’re saying it’s too early to think of names?” He flinches. “I’m trying to stay calm here and not have the thoughts that you are second guessing this, but with the way you’ve been acting the last couple days… something is bothering you.”

She watches as he squeezes his eyes shut and he takes another gulp from his flask.

“Aye, love, you’re right. I haven’t been entirely forthright with you. The other night, I had a bit of a nightmare and I guess it’s sort of stuck with me.”

She reaches forward and wraps her fingers around his hook. “What happened?”

His hand fidgets as he plays with the rings on his fingers and stares at her. He’s silent for a long time, but she doesn’t push because she knows whatever he has to tell her is weighing on him and pushing him will only make it worse.

“There are things in my past that you don’t know about.”

Reaching out, she puts her other hand over his own, “I know.”

“Things that I’ve done…”

“Killian, whatever you did, you’re not that person anymore. It’s not going to change anything between us.”

Chuckling dryly, his thumb rubs across her engagement ring.

“That’s quite a lot of faith you’re putting on me, Swan.”

“I love you,” his eyes close and he smiles softly at her words. “You told me before that I had to put my trust in you, now you have to put your trust in me. Trust that I’m not going to—”

“I killed my father.” Her mouth pops open and she sits up a little straighter while he keeps his eyes glued to the table top. “I killed him all to get my revenge.”

Her brow goes together but she can’t seem to find any words to say. She’s always known he’s killed, half the people that are in her life have killed before, but it’s still a shock to hear.

He suddenly jumps up from the booth and starts to pace.

“It was a test, to see if I had what it takes to get a certain job done. I found him in a tavern, he had fallen under a sleeping curse shortly after he sold Liam and I to a life of servitude. He slept for a century before the nurse who cared for him awoke him with True Love’s kiss.”

He spits the last words out like it’s the most disgusting thing he’s ever heard and she can see him slowly morph back into the pirate she met in the Enchanted Forest.

“They had a son, you see,” her eyes widen and he nods. “Aye, I had a little brother. I went there one night and listened to him spit the same lies to that boy he did to me the night before he left. But still, that isn’t the reason I decided to kill him. No, I killed him because that little boy, his son? Do you know what his name was?”

She gives a slight shake of her head and shrugs her shoulders, eyes blinking quickly.

“Liam. His name was Liam.”

Suddenly it all makes sense, and the tears that started to form in her eyes from sadness are now from anger. She understands completely why he’s acting the way that he is while he talks about his father. The man, if anyone dares to call him that, _sold_ his two sons, then went on to have a new family and tried to replace them.

“I stuck that dagger deep in his gullet and left that boy without a father. What’s to say this boy doesn’t come after me seeking revenge? What if he goes after Henry or the bean? Emma, my past may come back to haunt me and I…”

Before he can continue she holds her hand up to stop him. She doesn’t need to hear anymore because all he’s trying to do now is unknowingly push her away.

She turns in the booth and faces him. “What was your dream?”

He runs his hand over his face and loops his thumb through his belt.

“I dreamt that I… well, _Hook_ , found us together and destroyed you, Henry and the bean out of anger.”

She looks down at her lap and knows then what the problem is. He’s scared to become a father, that much is clear, so he’s trying to show her that he’s not fit. When she looks up at him, she can see the fear in his eyes and all she wants to do is take it away.

“I was a villain for so long, love.”

“But you’re not anymore,” she pleads with him.

He looks at her like she’s gone completely insane. “Did you not hear what I just told you? Do you think that’s the worse that I’ve done?”

“Do you want me to leave?” she asks in confusion.

“What?” he breathes out. “No, of course not.”

“Then why are you trying to push me away?”

“I’m trying to show you who I really am!”

She stands up and clenches her fists at her side.

“That’s not who you are. So you’ve done bad things, you’ve killed. Name one person we know that hasn’t!”

“You haven’t.”

“Do you think that means that I don’t understand you? That I don’t have darkness? Killian, after hearing that story… I know where you’re coming from. I get it, but that’s not you anymore. Look, I know you probably don’t want to admit it, but you’re just scared…”

“Of course I’m scared!” He chokes out. “I’m terrified! If we’re to believe the rules of this whole _bloody_ place, then it’s only a matter of time before I lose my happy ending. That’s what that whole dream was about!”

She takes a step forward and opens her mouth, but stops when his words process in her brain.

“Wait. If you’re afraid of losing your happy ending, that means you found it. What is it?”

He looks at her with his brow together before he reaches over with his hand and rubs her stomach.

“Don’t you know, Emma?” She sucks in a breath. “It’s you.”

Her heart skips a beat and she doesn’t even realize she’s moving until their lips are connected. His hand makes its way into her hair and he hums against her lips. All this time, she’s been thinking about her own fears and insecurities, she’s never realized that Killian is just as scared as she is about all of this.

When they pull apart, she keeps her eyes on his lips and brushes her fingers against his waist.

“There is just one thing I do need to know.” He takes a deep breath, closes his eyes and nods. “What do you think of Killian David Jones for a boy, call him KJ for short?”

His eyes snap back open and he looks at her in complete shock.

“Do you like it?” she asks with a shrug.

He stays silent for what seems like hours, just standing there staring at her like she just told him to eat a poisoned apple. She can feel her lips twitching as she tries to hold back her smile. The terrors of his past, just like her own, have him fearing she is going to run for the hills.

With a stuttering breath, he blinks, and she bites her lip when he gives her a disbelieving smile and nods.

“Aye. I think it’s a strong name,” he whispers.

They continue to stare at each other before she giggles and pats her stomach.

“Should we even attempt to pick a name for a girl or are you positive it’s a boy?”

He lets out a watery chuckle and shakes his head, before he can respond, the door to the diner is yanked open and Belle comes rushing in, out of breath.

“Emma! Emma, I found it! We have to tell Regina and the others.”

She turns to the librarian and holds up her hands. “Okay, Belle, slow down. What did you find?”

Belle holds a book out to them and points to it.

“Zelena’s plan. I figured out what she’s doing.”

* * *

* * *

Killian’s eyes go wide as they rush into Regina’s dining room. There’s a large purple vortex in the ceiling and his first instinct is to grab Emma and push her behind him. But once the vortex closes, she’s side stepping him.

“What the hell was that?”

“Cora.” Regina answers before she turns around.

It’s then they realize Snow is sitting back in a chair, looking weak with her skin even paler than usual. David rushes to his wife’s side, along with Emma and kneel before her.

“Is she okay?”

David reaches up to rub his wife’s face. “Mary Margaret, can you hear me?”

Snow starts to mumble something and Killian takes a step forward. Though he’s concerned, seeing Emma upset worries him. He puts his hand on her shoulder in an attempt to calm her and squeezes it when she lets out a stuttering breath.

She reaches up to wrap her fingers around his while the Prince and former Queen argue about Snow’s wellbeing. David wants to rush her to the hospital, he’s right, she doesn’t look well at all, while Regina wants to question her about what happened.

“It can wait!” David hollers out.

Emma stands with a sigh and Killian puts his hand on her lower back.

“If we want to stop Zelena, we have to know what the hell she’s doing and why!” Regina cries out desperately.

“I can help with half of that.” Everyone turns back to look at Belle who has wide eyes. “She’s planning on going back. Back in time.”

Killian’s brow goes together and he looks to Emma who just shrugs.

“Are you certain?” Regina asks and Belle nods. “No one’s ever been able to cast a spell to go back in time.”

“Well, clearly, she thinks she can succeed.” Belle snaps. “I mean, brains, courage, a resilient heart—”

“Explains why she tried to take your heart,” Emma explains.

Regina looks up at the before she sits down with a sigh.

“Those ingredients,” Belle starts again, “are in _every_ time travel spell I’ve found.”

David shakes his head. “Why go back in time, I mean, we have no idea what she’s trying to accomplish.”

Snow lets out a sigh and lifts her head. “I do. She… she didn’t want to give up Zelena. She was forced to, by, by my mother.”

Killian lifts his eyebrow while Emma’s mouth pops open.

“Princess Eva, she told a secret, just like I did…”

“Wait,” Emma says as she takes a step forward. “I thought our family were the good guys?”

Regina sighs and runs her hands through her hair. “Life is too messy for it to ever be that simple.”

He feels Emma shiver and he wraps his arm around her waist before he pulls her close to him.

“So you’re saying if it wasn’t for Snow’s mother, Cora would have kept Zelena?” David asks in confusion.

“She would have been tutored by Rumpelstiltskin,” Belle adds.

“All if it weren’t for this… Princess Eva?” Killian asks.

“So that means…” Emma trails off.

Snow licks her lips and leans her head back. “Zelena’s going back to kill my mother.”

The entire room is silent while they process the information. It’s not until Regina lets out a gasp and sits forward they realize the gravity of what the Wicked Witch wants to accomplish.

“You’ll have never been born.”

He feels Emma go stiff beside him before she turns her head to Regina.

“I’m guessing this is where your help ends.”

Regina looks at Emma with fear in her eyes. “No, think it through, Miss Swan. That means _you’ll_ have never been born, and neither will Henry.”

Killian’s stomach drops. In this new reality Zelena wants to create, the two most important people in his life would never exist. He tries not to remember what his life was like _before_ Emma, but now there is someone out there trying to make sure she would _never_ be in it. His arm tightens around her and fights back the urge to grab her and run.

“And on this different path, Regina, you may not be, either.” Snow tells her.

“It’s a good thing no one has ever succeeded with this time-travel nonsense,” Killian blows out and Emma’s fingers grip his hip.

“The baby,” David whispers as he stands up.

Killian’s eyes go wide and he takes a step forward, instinctively putting himself in front of Emma.

“What?”

“That’s what’s missing. That’s why none have succeeded,” David explains as he takes a step toward them. “Somehow, some way, your baby is the key. Zelena went to a lot of effort to get close to your unborn child. That’s what she’s after.”

His hand instantly moves to cover Emma’s stomach while her hands wrap around his arm. It all makes sense, why she made an effort to get close to her, why she was so concerned about the baby.

“What is she going to do with it?” Emma asks in a whisper.

“It matters not,” Killian states before he turns to her. “She’s not going to get it.”

“It’s happening again, only this time with my daughter,” Snow gasps and they all turn to her. “She’s going to give birth and an evil sorceress is threatening the future of her child.”

Regina sighs and sits down. “To be fair, the first time, I was threatening _you_. Everyone else just became collateral damage.”

Emma looks up at Killian with tears in her eyes and he takes a step closer to her.

“We’re going to stop her, love,” he whispers. “Since the bean’s not born, she’s stuck, and we have what we need.” Emma’s brows go together and he puts his hand on her stomach. “Time.”

Later that night, while they lay alone in the darkness of their room, she finally whispers her fears.

“I’m scared.”

Her head is on his chest and his arms are around her. She’s not telling him something he doesn’t already know, he’s been able to tell since the moment it was announced at Regina’s. She’s been quiet, clinging to him with every step, and her eyes seem to scan each room they walk into.

“She’s not going to win,” he mumbles, his lips pressed to her forehead.

She moves so that she’s looking up at him. “Are you sure?”

He reaches up to cup her face, his thumb rubbing soothing circles on her jaw.

“Aye. I’ve never been more sure of anything. You’re strong, Emma, and so am I. But we’re strongest together.”

Her glassy eyes search his before she leans up to give him a feather light kiss, and when her nightmares wake her in the middle of the night, he whispers his love for her in her ear and tells her that he’ll always be there to protect her.

No matter what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is dedicated to my Nan, she was tough as nails and one hell of a woman.


	27. Chapter Twenty-Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING. I’ve made it known that I don’t like Milah. In this chapter, there is some slight Milah ... bashing? (I don’t know if that is the correct word but it’s the one I’m going with.) If this makes you uncomfortable and/or angry, feel free to skip over it. I’m putting this in here so that Milah fans know and are prepared. This is how I feel and I hope you all respect that just how I respect people who feel differently. Thank you!

** Chapter Twenty-Seven **

Emma walks into the common area down in the bed and breakfast and gives her parent’s a smile.

“How are you feeling today?” Snow asks as she sits down in a chair.

“Okay,” she sighs. “I’ve gone to the bathroom about twenty times this morning, but I’m okay.”

Her parent’s chuckle and she brushes her hair behind her shoulder.

“Where’s Hook?”

“He’s dropping Henry off with Leroy, he should be back soon.”

Before any of them can comment, Regina comes stumbling into the room with her cheeks pink and a smile on her face. The relationship between her and Robin seems to be progressing quite nicely, Emma can’t remember her ever seeing her so happy.

“Regina. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you look smitten.” Snow says with a smirk.

The former queen scoffs. “Can we get started?”

“We’re waiting for Hook.”

Regina rolls her eyes and puts her bag down on the table. “I don’t have time to wait for the handless wonder. We have to figure out how to destroy my sister.”

Emma clenches her jaw but keeps her mouth shut.

David lets out a sigh and leans his elbows on his knees. “For once, I agree with Regina. Stopping her plan is the priority.”

She presses her lips together and nods. Killian should be there any minute and she can catch him up on whatever he misses.

“Well,” Emma starts and crosses her right leg over her left. “There’s something about this plan that doesn’t fit… Regina.”

“I’m the point of it,” she answers with a nod. “So she can take my life for herself.”

Emma shivers as she remembers the look on Killian’s face last night when he heard of Zelena’s plan. She’s never seen him so scared, he refused to leave her side for even a second and when she fell asleep, it was to him telling her how much he loved her.

Because if Zelena succeeded, he would still exist, but she wouldn’t.

“But why bring you back to Storybrooke?” Emma asks. “Why bring any of us?”

Regina puts her hands on her hips. “Well, no one’s ever succeeded at traveling through time. Perhaps something from this world makes it possible. But, what’s almost as troubling is that she was able to cast the curse to bring us all here in the first place.”

Emma’s brows knit together. “Why is that?”

“To do it, you have to give up the thing you love most. From what I gather, Zelena doesn’t love much.”

David stands from his perch on the couch and starts to pace in the entry way.

“Neither did you, you managed,” Emma huffs.

Regina stares at her harshly but doesn’t comment.

“Zelena is smart,” her father cuts in. “Strategic. Maybe we discovered something in the missing year to stop her.”

Snow’s face lights up and she moves to the edge of the couch. “And then, the only way to stop us from interfering was to bring us back here and wipe our memories. So, if we get them back, we might already know how to defeat her.”

David leans his hands on the back of the couch. “We just need to break this curse.”

Her mother turns to her with a smile. “Well, thank goodness we have a Savior.”

Emma balks and looks between all three of them. “I would love to, but there’s one problem. Last time, all it took was me believing in magic and kissing Henry. Since we’ve been back, I’ve done both and nothing.”

“The kissing wouldn't work,” everyone looks over at Regina. “You're pregnant. There's another person inside of you right now, and Henry can't exactly love something he doesn't know about.” They are all silent for a few moments before she takes a step forward with a gleam in her eye. “It’s the belief. _He_ needs to believe. In this new life, he doesn’t. We have to get him to believe again.”

Emma rolls her eyes and sits back in the chair. “We know that, but short of putting on a magic show, what else are we going to do?”

“How did you believe?”

She shrugs. “The storybook.”

Regina points to her with a smile. “That’s what started Henry on his original path, and what got you to believe. It’s the key in him believing, in him remembering, remembering _everything._ ”

Her lips twitch at how excited Regina seems. Henry getting his memories back means that he’ll remember her as his mother and that’s all Regina’s wanted since the moment they stepped foot in Storybrooke. She feels guilty for being sadden by the thought for a quick second, once Henry has his memories back, their life together she thought they had will officially be over, it will be nothing but cursed memories, but she knows that is what needs to be done.

“You’re right, we should go find it.” They all stand and Emma pulls her cell out of her pocket. “Let me just call Killian to see where he is, I’ll meet you guys outside.”

His phone rings a few times before his voicemail picks up. Her face scrunches together, because she finds it odd that he wouldn’t answer her call.

“Hey, I was just calling to see where you were. We came up with a plan to get Henry his memories back. We’re heading over to my parent’s loft, so just meet us there. I’ll see you soon, I love you.”

* * *

They find the storybook in her mother’s closet and Regina mumbles something about finding whose heart Zelena crushed to cast the curse while David says he’s going to call Leroy to tell him to bring Henry back.

Emma pulls her phone out of her pocket and frowns. Killian still hasn’t showed up from dropping Henry off and she’s starting to get worried.

“Everything okay?” Snow asks as she sits down on the bed next to her.

“Killian hasn’t called. He should have been here by now.”

“Maybe he got distracted. Your father said his crew got into a tussle last night at the bar, perhaps he went there to have a talk with them.”

Emma snorts. “Without telling anyone? He’s all but put bumper guards around me because of the baby, I highly doubt it.”

Snow giggles just as David walks up to them.

“They just go out onto the water. Leroy is going to turn the boat around, they should be back by the time we get there.”

“They were already out on the water?”

David nods. She sucks in a breath and dials Killian’s again, but just like before, he doesn’t answer. She ends the call without leaving a voicemail and quickly stands up.

“Something’s wrong. Killian should have been here by now and he’s not answering his phone.”

Her breathing starts to pick up and she can feel her body begin to shake. Her father takes a step forward and puts his hands on her arms.

“Emma, calm down. I’m sure there is a reasonable explanation. Let’s go get Henry, he probably knows where Hook is.”

She blinks away the tears in her eyes and gives a short nod, though she can’t fight the feeling that something is very wrong.

* * *

Henry is just jumping off the boat as they approach the docks. The entire walk over, Emma searched the surroundings for any signs of Killian, but there were none and she still can’t help but feel that something is wrong.

“Mom!” Henry calls out as he runs up. “Is everything okay? Leroy said you needed me to come back.”

She gives him a small smile. “Everything is fine.”

Henry’s brow goes together before he looks behind her. “Where’s Killian?”

Her heart skips a beat and the panic she was feeling seconds before comes rushing back to her.

“We… we were hoping you could tell us.”

He shakes his head. “I haven’t seen him since he dropped me off earlier. He said he was going back to the Inn to get you. Is there something wrong?”

She looks back at her parent’s and she sees it on their faces. They know now something is wrong now, Killian is missing.

“No, I…”

Henry takes a step back. “No, you’re lying and you’ve been keeping things from me. What’s going on? Where’s Killian? Does this have anything to do with the person that killed my Dad?”

She tries to control her breathing and focus on her son. They have to get him to believe because if they do, they can break the curse.

“I’m sorry I was keeping things from you. You’re right, you deserve to know the truth,” she turns to take the book from Regina.

Henry looks down at the book in confusion. “About fairy tales? I don’t understand.”

“About magic, kid.”

He looks up at her like she’s gone insane. “From a book?”

Shaking her head, she holds it out to him. “It’s more than just a book. Take it.”

Henry eyes her one last time before he reaches up and wraps his fingers around the edge of the story book. Instantly, his body goes stiff, and his eyes stare off. He lets out a few gasps and she can tell the moment it all snaps into place. His brow knits together and he blinks.

“Mom?” He asks in confusion and she smiles at him, reassuringly. His eyes then move over her shoulders and widen. “Mom?!”

Not even a second later, Regina is shooting past her and wrapping her arms around him. Tears prick her eyes as she takes a step back and watches. In that instant, she no longer misses it just being them, because the pure happiness that crossed her son’s face the moment he remembered his adoptive mother makes her realize that _this_ is home and it always has been.

Forcing her tears to stay at bay, Emma turns to her parents.

“Did it work, do you guys remember?”

They look at her sadly and shake their heads. She sighs and runs her hands through her hair, it was supposed to work, they were supposed to get their memories back once Henry got his, but they didn’t. She failed…

And Killian is still missing.

“Where’s Killian... ergh… Hook?” Henry asks with a chuckle after he finishes hugging his grandparents.

David sighs. “We haven’t been able to reach him since he left with you.”

The boy looks at all of them before he shrugs. “He dropped me off here with Grumpy and said he was going back to you.”

Emma’s jaw clenches as her hands go to her hips and she starts to pace.

“Emma…” her mother starts.

“We need to find him, _now_!”

* * *

It’s past lunch when they all meet back at Regina’s office. They’ve checked all over Storybrooke and no one has seen or heard from Killian since he dropped Henry off at the docks. Emma can’t stop her body from shaking or the tears that continue to leak from her face. Her stomach has turned multiple times, but instead of throwing up, she does nothing but dry heave because she hasn’t eaten all day.

David tries to tell her to stay calm, that it’s not good for the baby, but she doesn’t listen.

“Look,” Regina starts with a huff. “I don’t mean to be blunt here, but have we considered the possibility that maybe he…”

Emma’s eyes snap up to her and the Mayor presses her lips together.

“Left?” David asks.

“No one has heard from him and he didn’t leave a note.”

Robin takes a step forward. “Regina, darling, I’ve known Hook for only a short while and even I don’t believe that.”

“He wouldn’t leave me,” Emma whispers as she wraps her arms around herself.

Regina gives her a sad smile. “Are you sure? It’s not like Captain Guyliner ha—”

Clenching her jaw, she glares up at the Mayor and cuts her off, “That’s it! I’ve _had_ it with your name calling and you putting him down all the time!”

“Emma…” David starts but she cuts him off.

“No! Killian has done more than enough to prove himself and you are constantly putting him down. I’m not going to deal with it anymore! So either accept it and keep your fucking mouth _shut_ , or leave! We don’t need your help, Regina, we’ve stopped villains before, _including_ you and we’ll do it again. If you don’t like it, there’s the door, have I made myself clear?”

The entire room is silent as the two women stare at each other. She doesn’t care if Regina storms out of the room and never comes back, she’s done with her and her little quips. Her fiancé is _missing_ and she will not stand for someone who is just going to stand in their way.

After a few moments, Regina presses her lips together and gives a tight nod.

“Good,” Emma murmurs.

She can feel their eyes on her as she sits down on the couch and puts her head in her hands. All she wants in that moment is to speak to Killian, to have him put his arms around her and tell her it’s going to be okay, but he’s not there.

Robin, David, and Regina continue to discuss possible places he may be as her fingers move to wrap around his brother’s ring.

“Forgive me if I’m missing the obvious, but, um, have we considered that perhaps Zelena may have something to do with this?” Robin asks.

Before any of them can answer, there’s a knock on the door. Her and David both stand while Robin rushes over to answer it. When the door opens, she sees an older gentleman walk in with salt and pepper hair that pokes out from under his brown knitted cap. He’s wearing modern clothes, but the red scarf he uses as a belt and the brown moccasins tell her he’s use to a more different time.

“Apologies for the interruption, but I’ve heard the Captain has gone missing.”

“Have you seen Hook?” Robin asks.

The man shakes his head with a frown. “I’m afraid I haven’t, but I wanted to offer my services.”

She has to choke back another sob at his words and collapses back down onto the couch. Her father is next to her before she even realizes and pulls her into his arms.

“We are fine,” Regina says with a huff.

The man’s shoulders sag and Robin puts his hand on the small of her back.

“Regina, this man has offered to help. We shouldn’t turn that away.”

“I hardly think we need the help of a pirate,” Regina scoffs.

Emma sits up from her father’s arms at Regina’s words and wipes her face. She didn’t notice it at first, but everything about him does scream pirate.

“What’s your name?”

He takes a step forward as he removes his cap and bows his head slightly.

“Name’s Mac, Princess.”

“How long have you been a part of Hook’s crew?” David asks from next to her.

Mac fidgets with the cap in his hands and looks to the ground before David stands up.

“Speak freely, Sailor.”

He looks up and lets out a sigh of relief. It’s then Emma realizes this man is accustomed to acting a certain way when in the presence of Royalty and isn’t use to how formal things are in Storybrooke.

“Long before he was known as Hook, Your Highness,” Mac answers as he puts his hat back on his head. “I’ve been with the Captain since the beginning.”

Her jaw drops and they all exchange a look before they turn back to the pirate.

“Well, the more men we have, the more places we can look. I’d be happy to have you join me and my men, we can search the woods near the Wicked Witch's house to see if anything sticks out.”

“Permission to keep my search with the Princess?” Mac requests as he squirms on his feet.

“And why is that?” Regina asks as she crosses her arms.

Mac swallows and starts to fidget again. “Well… she’s with child, and she’s the Captain’s lady, which makes her part of the crew. It would be bad form to leave her without assistance.”

It almost makes her smile to know that Killian has such loyal people looking after him, but then she remembers the reasoning for them being there and it causes a new wave of tears to run down her face.

David, Regina and Robin all look to her with raised eyebrows and she just stares at them for a couple seconds before she gives a slight nod.

Her father puts his hands on his hips and says, “Okay, this is what we’re going to do.”

* * *

“I think you should come stay with your mother and me,” David tells her as they walk out of Regina’s office.

It’s going on ten and after searching the entire town, the Witch's House excluded, they haven’t found Killian anywhere. They met back at Regina’s office to do a locator spell, but whatever magic Zelena has on him, makes the spell not effective.

Emma tried to use her own, but her emotions were so high, she set the map on fire.

She looks up at her father with swollen eyes, she stopped covering her tears once it was clear Killian had been taken by the Witch.

“If I may be so bold, I concur with His Majesty, Princess,” Mac says softly.

Her eyes move over to him and she blinks. The elderly Pirate has stayed by her side since the moment they started their search. She wants to tell him thanks, tell him how much she appreciates his help, but every time she tries to speak, her throat closes and a sob comes out.

“Henry will be staying with Regina, so we know he’s safe,” David explains while he puts his hand on her arm. “We can go by the Inn and pack a bag, tomorrow we’ll get the rest of your things.”

“Allow me,” Mac cuts in. “If the lady allows, I would be happy to retrieve the items you require.”

Her chin quivers and she rubs her hand down her face as David turns to Mac and gives him specific instructions to pack up their belongings and bring them straight to the loft. The Pirate gives them a slight bow before he scurries off into the direction of the Inn.

“Dad…”

“Emma, I know you’re worried, but you have to try and stay calm. It’s not good for you or the baby.”

She sucks in a stuttering breath and wraps her arms around her stomach.

“We don’t know why she took him… or if he’s even...” she chokes on the words before they can come out.

He quickly pulls her into his arms and places his hand on the back of her head.  “You can’t think like that, Emma. If Zelena took him, it’s for a reason. He’s going to be okay.”

When she makes it back to the loft, her mother repeats the same words to her, but she only nods. They’ve been so stupid waiting around for Zelena to make her next move when they should have taken the fight to her. Now Killian is gone and God only knows what is happening to him.

Mac shows up an hour later along with Smee and another older looking Pirate with all the belongings they had in the Inn. They try to relay their sorrow, asking if there is anything they can do, but she can’t find it in her to answer them. So David takes the lead while she walks up the stairs to her old room and sits down on the edge of the bed where her mother has started to unpack their bags.

Silent tears stream down her face as her mother speaks of hope and Killian being okay. But she knows the truth, he’s in pain, she can just feel it, and there is nothing she can do about it.

“Mr. Mac said these were the clothes you had in a hamper, so I’ll throw them in the laundry for you,” Snow explains before she dumps the bag onto the bed.

Emma watches as she separates them into piles and for some reason, she can’t take her eyes off of Killian’s clothes. The shirt he wore yesterday lays next to her and she brushes her fingers over it. It’s no longer warm from his body, but chilled due to the night air and it makes her shiver.

Is he warm? The snow is covering the ground and its so cold outside.

Is he suffering greatly? There’s no doubt in her mind that Zelena would hurt him.

Her brow goes together when she sees something sticking out from the back pocket of a pair of his jeans before she reaches over and pulls it out. She unfolds it and lets out a watery chuckle when she finds it’s a photo of herself that he took back in New York.

It was taken just before they got engaged. For a Valentine’s Day present, Killian got them tickets to a play she wanted to see and she was sitting on the couch that was in their bedroom putting her shoe on.

_“Did you just take my picture?” she asks with a smirk as she finishes strapping her shoe._

_“Aye, you look absolutely stunning, Swan.”_

_Rolling her eyes, she stands and brushes her hands over her dress while he turns his phone to show her._

_“Oh, Killian, delete that!”_

_He gives her a smirk and puts his phone in his slacks._

_“Never. I’m going to have the lad print it out for me so that I may have it always.”_

_“Going to carry it around in your pocket?”_

_He wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her close._

_“Perhaps,” he whispers before he kisses her into oblivion._

“Oh, Emma, you look so beautiful.”

She looks up to see her mother smiling down at the photo and she hands it to her. Picking up one of his shirts, she stands and walks over to her window. The sky is black but the stars are shining bright. She lifts the shirt to her face and squeezes her eyes shut when she smells him.

“Do you miss your life there?” Snow asks, her voice clouded in sadness.

She sniffles and brings the shirt to her cheek. Part of her does, because it was easier, there weren’t any Wicked Witches or flying monkey’s, they were just a couple in love.

But she knows Storybrooke is where they belong and they can make it work here.

“I miss _him_.”

They are silent for a few moments before she feels her mother’s hand on her back. “I’ll go make you some tea.”

She moves the shirt to her chest and holds it tight as she leans against the window frame.

“Killian,” she breathes out into the night. “I _will_ find you… I will _always_ find you.”

* * *

Emma watches from the couch as the sky starts to lighten. She hasn’t slept in forty-eight hours, but she isn’t tired. She just spends the nights staring out the window, wishing Killian would appear in the distance. She knows Zelena is keeping him at her house in the woods, but when Robin and his men tried to approach, the house disappeared. When he told them all, they went there themselves and found that what Robin said was true, only Regina said it didn’t _disappear_ , it was there, just had a powerful cloaking spell over it that she couldn’t break.

She wants to try and break it herself, but no one will allow her. With her emotions all over the place, her magic is less predictable and she could end up hurting someone.

Her ears perk when she hears movement outside of the door and moves to the kitchen. Her fingers tap against the counter and she concentrates on the coffee pouring into the pot to distract her. Once it’s finished, she pours the hot liquid into a mug and walks to the front door.

Mac quickly turns and puts his hand to his sword, but stops when he’s sees her.

“Apologies, Princess,” he mumbles.

She gives him a tight-lipped smile and offers him the fresh mug, he’s spent the last two nights standing guard outside of the loft and she can’t help but feel gratitude toward the older man.

“I didn’t know if you liked sugar or cream.”

He takes the mug from her and raises it in thanks. “Black is perfect. Thank you.”

She moves to sit down on the steps and after a couple seconds of hesitation, he joins her. He seems to have learned that things aren’t as formal in Storybrooke as they are in the Enchanted Forest, but he still remains respectful.

They sit in silence for a while, the only sound coming from the birds outside and his soft sips of the coffee.

When she finally does speak, it’s long after the hall is brightened by the sun. “You know, I put a protection spell around the loft. Zelena couldn’t get in even if she wanted to.”

Mac clears his throat and squares his shoulders.

“Aye, but just in case, I feel better keeping a weather eye.” He lets out a soft snort and tilts his head. “It’s been a long while since I’ve willing protected a Royal bloodline.”

“How did you meet Killian?”

“I met the Captain while he was still a Lieutenant in the Royal Navy, he was a young lad then, barely twenty.” Her eyes snap over to him and her jaw drops as he gives her a smile and nods. “Such a refined gentleman he was, with his white pressed pants and long hair.”

Her face shows amusement and for the first time in days, she feels her lips twitch into an actual smile. It’s hard to picture Killian as anything other than the Pirate Captain he’s been, even in New York, he had a swagger about him that screamed rebel and demanded attention.

“He used to say ‘drinking rum leads to bad form and it wasn’t tolerated among good sailors’.” The older man chuckles and shakes his head. “Between you and me, he was a right arse about it.”

A giggle escapes her lips and she looks back at the older man with a smile.

“That’s bold of you to say about your Captain.”

He scoffs and waves his hand. “I’ve told him plenty of times, when in private, of course. I would never disrespect the Captain in front of the crew.”

“And he would allow it?”

Snorting, he says, “Of course, I _am_ the one who first trained him when he joined the Royal Navy. The Jolly was known as the Jewel of the Realm then, captained by the eldest Jones brother, Liam.”

She lets out a slight gasp, “You knew Liam?”

“Aye, I was his first mate.”

“Wow,” she breathes out before she looks back down the stairs. “So when you said you’ve been there since the beginning, you really meant the beginning.”

Taking a sip of his coffee, he nods. “I’ve seen it all.”

“Will you tell me about it?” she asks in a soft whisper.

He gives her a gentle smile and begins to tell her stories of Liam and Killian when they were younger. She wraps her arms around her legs and leans her cheek against her knees as she listens with rapt attention.

Some of the stories she’s heard before, Killian would whisper them to her as she fell asleep at night, wanting her to know more about his past, but there’s something different about hearing it from a third party’s perspective, something beautiful. Mac explains the love the brothers had for each other in perfect detail and it makes her sad because she knows how their story ends.

“Liam would pick on him relentlessly, call him _little_ brother and the Captain would correct him with _younger_ ,” Mac says with a smile. “But there was no denying how incredibly loyal they were to each other.”

A frown forms on her lips when she sees him look down at his lap.

“Liam always was a self-righteous git, he knew his brother looked up to him so he paraded around as if he knew everything.” He gives her a sideways grin. “Don’t get me wrong, Princess, Liam Jones was a good man, a noble man. Possibly one of the best men I ever had the pleasure of meeting, he believed in good form and believed there was no greater honor than serving our King. It just so happened that our King was a selfish pillock who thought nothing of honor, only of glory, and didn’t care how obtained said glory.”

The malice in his voice surprises her and she thinks Killian isn’t the only one still holding onto the rage that came when Liam died.

“The Captain was never the same after his brother died,” he explains softly. “But neither were we. I made a vow to Liam the day we buried him at sea to always look after his brother, and I did. We sailed the seas under our own will and answered to no crown. But every time we saw a ship sailing a certain color, we took it down, justice for our fallen Captain. There has never been and never will be a ship like the Jolly, she’s a mighty vessel.”

She presses her lips against her knees and stares off because she knows that ship is no longer around because of a trade Killian made to save her.

Mac lets out a sigh and leans forward to rest his arms on his thighs. “Then Milah came along…”

Her head whips back over to him and her breath catches.

“Never did care for her,” Her eyebrows go up because she wasn’t expecting that. “It’s bad form for a mother to leave a child in search for her own adventures. But she begged and pleaded until the Captain finally gave in and took her away, even convinced him to lie and say he took her by _force_ ,” he spits out with disgust. “Killian Jones has done many of things, but to have dishonor against a lady, that’s something he would _never_ do, and he gave himself that reputation for her all because she promised we would go back for her son. But the weeks would pass and each time the Captain asked when we were to return, she always had a different excuse as to why it wasn’t time yet.”

He shakes his head as if to rid himself of a memory.

“Like a raging storm, they were, always bringing out the worst in each other. But the Captain loved her, no matter how many times she made him look a fool by flirting with the crew or encouraging him to pillage each vessel we happened upon, accusing him of being just like the husband she left when he refused. Her husband was a coward, you see, so she craved the bravery the Captain possessed. Would stand by his side tall and proud whenever he had to delve out a punishment or barked orders. She may have loved him, in her own way, I suppose, the only person that truly knows that is her, but she did _not_ better him.”

Mac looks over at Emma with a grimace on his face.

“We made port in a small village and the Captain ran into the Dark One. When he asked about Milah, he told him what she wanted, that she died long ago, because she was too scared to tell him the truth. I suppose in the end, she saw the error of her ways, said she was the coward for lying. That’s not to say the way she met her end was just, no one deserves to have their heart ripped out of their chest and crushed before their eyes.”

Her own heart is pounding as he turns to stare off in the distance.

“For the second time in his life, he had to hold a person he loved in his arms while they died. He changed that day completely, there was nothing left of the boy I knew in the Royal Navy. Captain Killian Jones died, and Captain Hook took his place. For years the only thing we sought was vengeance, going to that cursed island and working for that wretched child.”

He shakes his head again.

“The last I saw of the Captain was just near thirty years ago, said he found a sure way to get his revenge. There was darkness in his heart and I realized then that I could no longer live my life that way. I saw no light at the end of our journey and though it pained me to break my vow, I had to depart. He was angry, of course, but the Captain and I… we understand each other. I’m the only one left of the crew from the Jewel, you see, that is why he let me go, there is a mutual respect.” He pauses and takes a sip of his coffee. “As luck would have it, I was not in the Enchanted Forest when the first curse was cast, I had settled in the land of Arendelle. I’ve aged and lived a happy life on the land. I don’t recall going back to the Enchanted Forest, but I must have, because one morning, I woke up in this strange realm, with all these new things I’ve never seen. I searched for him, I knew he had been here before and I wanted to check up on him, Liam would have wanted me too. But then I heard the strangest thing… Captain Hook was not here. He left a year prior, gave up his life as a pirate, his _memories_ , all for _you_.”

He turns his whole body to face her with a small smile on his face and she swallows.

“Since Milah, the only thing the Captain would give up for a woman was a couple hours of his time so that she may warm his bed, so I couldn’t believe it. I was sure they had to be mistaken, because when we parted ways, I feared the darkness in his heart had overtaken him completely. But then there were the whispers around town, whispers that said the heroes were attempting to bring the Savior and her Captain back to help us all. Two moons passed before I was able to see him. I’m afraid I only know a few of the crew members, the rest are all new, but Mr. Smee was able to give me some advice on where I could locate him and I found him on his way to see you, and do you happen to know what I saw, Princess?”

She takes a deep breath and slowly shakes her head.

“I saw the light that surrounded him, the happiness, the _love_. The smile on his face reminded me of the young man I met all those lifetimes ago. The hardness I had grown to know was gone from his face, replaced with peace. Though he looked the same age, he wasn’t the Captain I remembered, and it’s all because of you. We spoke briefly, I gave him my best wishes on the news of his upcoming child and he smiled so wide, I thought for sure his face was going to split in half.”

She giggles while Mac chuckles because she knows exactly what smile he’s talking about, it’s one of her favorites and it appears every time they talk about the baby.

“After a short while, the ringing device sounded from his pocket and he had to depart. He spoke of talking again, said he would like me to meet his family, though he couldn’t guarantee on when. I’ve not minded, knowing that he is well and has left his life of darkness behind, is well enough for me. But as he walked away, I couldn’t help but think… he finally has become the man that he always wanted to be, a hero, and that’s because of you.”

Her throat tightens and she can feel the tears finally stream down her face.

“He’s changed me, too.”

He smiles softly at her before he turns back to his cup. Her brother’s cries sound from inside of the loft and she lets out a sigh before she reaches up to wipe the tears from her eyes and stands.

“Well, I better get breakfast started. Regina is bringing Henry by first thing and I have to tell him he’s going to be a big brother.”

Her words falter at the end, in no way does she want to tell Henry about the baby without Killian, it’s something they should being doing together, but with him missing, her parents told her it’s best she tells him as soon as possible so they don’t have another ‘surprise announcement’ again.

Standing, he gives a nod. “Aye, Princess. I’m sure the young lad will be most excited about the news.”

“Will you please come in for breakfast this morning?” Mac shuffles on his feet and looks to the ground. “I insist. You’ve probably had about much sleep as I have lately and the least I can do is offer you a meal.”

He chuckles. “I happily accept than, milady. But if I may be so bold, will the Princess partake in the meal today? The Captain would give me twenty licks with the whip if he were to find out I was allowing you to go without eating while in my charge.”

She rolls her eyes but there is a small smile on her face. It’s true, she’s barely eaten since Killian was taken, but it’s not for lack of trying. Every time she does, she gets so upset that it makes her sick and it ends with her throwing up.

So she just skips most meals and sticks with liquids. She knows it’s not the best, along with throwing up, she’s had dizzy spells and has almost fainted twice. It’s not good for her or the baby, but she’s had worse.

When she was pregnant with Henry in Phoenix, she was lucky if she got a full meal once a day. They weren’t really caring for pregnant teenagers in prison.

But, she promises Mac she’ll try and they walk into the loft together. Henry and Regina show up about an hour later with Robin and his son and her heart breaks all over again, because the boy’s eyes instantly search out for his stepfather and sadden when he doesn’t see him.

The night he got his memories back, after they went to visit Neal’s grave, they finally talked about the past year and a half.

_“So the Wicked Witch took Killian?” Henry asks as he sits down next to her on the edge of the bed._

_He came up to her bedroom to pack some things to take over to Regina’s._

_“We think so,” she mumbles, trying not to cry. “Nobody can seem to get a hold of him and when we tried a locator spell it didn’t work. She either took him and put a spell so we won’t be able to locate him, or he’s not in Storybrooke.”_

_“Mom,” Henry starts. “Killian wouldn’t leave us. You do know that, right?”_

_Her lips press together and she nods. “I do. We’ve… we’ve been through a lot since we got our memories back, but we worked through it. We love each other.”_

_He rests his head against her shoulder and puts his hand on top of hers._

_“I’m glad. You two were so happy in New York, and just because we couldn’t remember who we really were doesn’t mean you can’t be happy like that here. We’re a family.”_

_She looks down at him with a smile. “You still think of Killian as family?”_

_When he lifts his head, she can see the tint of pink on his cheeks._

_“Yeah,” he says with a shrug. “I mean, I know he’s Captain Hook, but I was kind of hoping he’d want to be my stepdad still.”_

_She wraps her arm around his waist and pulls him to her chest. Her lips press to his forehead before she rests her cheek against him._

_“Of course he does. He loves you, Henry. Like you said, just because he loved you when he didn’t remember who he was doesn’t mean he doesn’t love you here.”_

_They stay silent for a few moments before Henry moves to look up at her._

_“You’re going to find him, mom. I believe in you.”_

“How was last night?” Snow asks, breaking her out of her thoughts.

The smile on Regina’s face is so large, Emma can feel herself starting to get upset again.

She really needs to get her emotions in check.

Henry tells them about finding all his things in his old room and it makes her heart ache even more. Not because her son enjoyed staying away from her, but because she wants to feel that happy again and she knows the only way she’s going to feel that happy is if she brings Killian home.

She picks at her eggs, but when she sees Mac eyeing her, she puts more effort into finishing her meal. She’s able to eat about a quarter of her plate before she feels full. It’s not much, but it’s more than she’s eaten in a while.

When Henry is done with his storytelling, David goes into their plans for the day. Robin, Regina and Snow plan to go back to the Wicked Witch’s house and find a weakness in the cloaking spell, while David, Emma, and Mac continue to search around town.

It feels pointless, they’ve searched every square inch of Storybrooke, but she doesn’t want to take the chance that she’s missed something.

“Hey kid,” Emma calls out to Henry while everyone else starts to get ready.

He was going to spend the day with Roland and Little John again, but she wanted to tell him about the pregnancy before they left.

“What’s up?”

She motions with her head for him to follow her upstairs and he does without question. Her heart is pounding in her chest and she can feel her stomach start to churn. She really doesn’t want to do this, but she knows she has to.

“Um,” she starts before she sits down on the edge of the bed next to her son. “There’s something I have to tell you. Well, something Killian and I have to tell you, but with him…” her throat tightens and she shakes her head. “I think I should tell you before anything else happens.”

He looks at her with his brow together as she swallows the lump in her throat. Her hand finds its way to his and she eyes the ring on her finger for a second before she looks up at him.

“I’m pregnant.”

There is probably a better way to tell him, if Killian were there he would have used better words, but he’s not, and she doesn’t know any other way than to just come right out and say it.

His eyes go wide and his jaw drops. It’s not until he finally speaks that she realizes she’s holding her breath.

“You’re going to have a baby?”

Before she can answer, Henry launches himself into her arms, she has to brace herself so she doesn’t fall off of the bed. When he pulls back, there’s a large smile on his lips and he lets out a tiny giggle.

“I’m going to be a big brother?” She opens her mouth, but he starts in again. “Is it a boy or a girl? Does Killian know? Is he happy? Does anyone else know?”

She laughs and puts her hands on her son’s arms. “Slow down, kid. One question at a time.”

“I’m sorry, this is just so exciting! I’m going to be a big brother, I mean, I’ve always wanted siblings and now… Mom, this is so awesome! Thank you!”

He launches himself back into her arms and she smiles through her tears, because even though she’s glad he’s happy, his reaction is something her and Killian should be seeing together.

But he’s gone… and she can’t help but feel that she’s failed him.


	28. Chapter Twenty-Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> double line break means POV change :D

** Chapter Twenty-Eight **

_“Cold, love?” Killian asks as they walk down the street._

_He looks over to see her cheeks have a slight tint to them and her nose is adorably red. It’s the middle of February, New York is just getting over its second snow storm and Henry asked if they could walk through the park on their way home from the movies. Which turned into he and the lad having a snow ball fight while Emma complained that it was cold._

_Her grip tightens on his arm as she leans her head on his shoulder._

_“How do you stand it… you’re not even wearing a winter coat!”_

_He chuckles with a shake of his head._

_“Try being on the high seas in the dead of winter, Swan. A little cold like this won’t seem so bad.”_

_She hums and turns to whisper in his ear, “I guess that’s why I always end up with the blankets at night.”_

_“You end up with the blankets because you bloody steal them!”_

_“Is that why you’re always curled up around me?”_

_His eyebrow ticks and he ducks his head to murmur, “How else do you expect me to keep warm?”_

_“Here is it!”_

_They both look up to see Henry standing before a large fountain with his arms out and a smile on his face._

_“I can think of a few ideas,” she whispers just before her hands let go of his arm and she walks over to her boy._

_Pressing his lips together, he breathes out a chuckle, “Bad form!”_

_Throwing a wink over her shoulder, she giggles and beckons him closer._

_“Isn’t this pretty?” Henry asks them._

_Killian’s eyes move over the fountain and a small smile tugs at his lips._

_“I come here sometimes to think,” he explains as he walks over to the ledge and sits down. “I like the way it lights up at night.”_

_“This is a nice little spot you got here, lad,” Killian motions to the fountain. “How did you come about finding it?”_

_Henry shrugs before he looks back at the water. He and Emma exchange a look before she steps out of his arms and goes to sit next to her son._

_“What’s wrong?”_

_“Do you guys believe in magic?”_

_Killian tilts his head while Emma asks, “You mean like pulling a rabbit out of a hat?”_

_“No,” Henry says with a roll of his eyes. “I mean like, wishes and stuff.”_

_“Oh,” Emma whispers, her eyes flicker over to him before she looks back at Henry. “Sure… of course.”_

_He hides his smirk because of all the wonderful things his Swan is, a liar isn’t one of them._

_Walking up to them, he places his hand on Henry’s shoulder, “If you believe it, that’s all that matters, lad.”_

_Henry smiles up at him before he looks back at the fountain. They are all silent for a few moments before Emma reaches out to take Henry’s hand in hers._

_“Is there something you’re wishing for?”_

_A flush of pink crosses his cheeks, “Mom, do you remember the last time you brought me here?”_

_Emma’s brow goes together as she tries to think before she answers, “Yeah. It was when we first moved here… you were upset about something.”_

_“It was because of you,” she blinks and her mouth parts in question. “I could tell you were lonely, so I wished our family would be complete, and do you know what happened a couple days later?”_

_Killian raises his eyebrow in question as Emma turns to smile up at him._

_“You met Killian in the hallway.”_

_A puff of air passes his lips and he swallows the lump in his throat._

_“There was magic here that day,” Henry explains as looks at them both. “And I just wanted to come here and share it with you guys._

_Emma reaches out and pulls Killian close before she leans forward and kisses Henry on the cheek._

_“Thank you.”_

_The three of them stay they for a long while, just staring into the waters, enjoying each other’s company, until Emma starts to blow into her hands and shivers._

_“Alright, I need the warmth of my house and maybe some cocoa with cinnamon?”_

_Henry and Killian both chuckle while she stands. Killian opens his arms and she goes into them willingly._

_“Wait,” the lad stops them. “Does anyone have a penny?”_

_Emma moves to check her coat pockets, but Killian finds one in his jeans and hands it to him. Henry closes his eyes before he takes the penny and throws it into the water. Emma rests her head on Killian’s shoulder and he turns to press his lips to her forehead._

_“What did you wish for?” Emma asks as Henry walks back up to them._

_Killian snorts and shakes his head, “You can’t ask that, love. If he tells us it won’t come true.”_

_She waves her hand, “That doesn’t matter.” When he doesn’t answer, she rolls her eyes, “You’re such a spoil sport. Let’s get home, I’m about to freeze to death out here.”_

_They watch as she walks ahead of them and Killian knocks the boy with his elbow, “So what did you wish for?”_

_The lad looks over at him with a smirk and shrugs, “To be a big brother.”_

Killian sucks in a breath and opens his eyes, only to slam them shut a second later. His head is throbbing and his entire body aches. When he tries to move, his ribs scream at him, and he coughs instead of groaning, he can feel blood and dirt caked on his face and the open wounds on his back.

“Good morning, Captain.”

He jerks up from the floor and looks behind him, face going hard when he sees the Crocodile sitting behind a set of bars with a blank stare.

“Where the bloody hell am I?”

“Take a look, dearie.”

He looks around and instantly notices he’s in the storm cellar they found at the Wicked Witch's house. Though, while the Crocodile is locked in his cage, Killian is free of one.

He moves as fast as his body will allow it and limps toward the steps.

“Did you really think it would be that simple?”

Killian ignores him and tries to push the doors open. When they don’t move, he lifts his arm to slam his hook against them, but hollers out and collapses onto the steps.

Trying to breathe through the pain, he clutches his side and growls, “What did you do to me?”

“Nothing Zelena didn’t want,” Rumple states with a shrug. “Although, I can’t lie. This was one task I was all too happy to fulfill.”

His left arm wraps around his torso and he squeezes his eyes shut. The last time he remembers being in this much pain, was when he was hit by the car at the town line. He doesn’t know how long he’s been locked away, he only has flashes of a metal bar hitting his body multiple times while the Dark One’s laugh echoed in his ears.

“Aye, and how does it feel? Being the Witches _lap dog_ , I’m sure you just love taking orders.”

Rumple’s jaw ticks but he stays quiet. Killian looks around the storm cellar for a possible exit, or a way to open the doors, but it’s dark and the bulb for the light is smashed.

“You’re not getting out of here unless Zelena wants you to get out of here. So you might as well stop while you’re ahead.”

“This isn’t my first cell,” he spits out. “I don’t just sit around and rot. Now, there’s someone I need to get back to.”

“Ah, yes. How is the lovely Miss Swan? Pregnancy going well?”

Killian shoots up and storms over to the locked cage.

“Heed my warning, _Crocodile_. If you go anywhere near Emma or my child, I _will_ end you.”

“You would think that you learned from the last time you threatened me that it doesn’t stick.”

He snarls out a growl. “There are many things that you must pay for and if you harm either of them, you will pay for them all _slowly._ I will find a way.”

Rumple keeps his face blank and just stares for a few moments before he straightens his shoulders.

“Unless your band of heroes can find a way to get the dagger from Zelena, threats are all you will have.”

Killian ignores him and begins to look around again. He limps over to a work bench and starts to rifle through the tools. There has to be a way out, he has to get back to Emma, he has to protect her, Henry and their baby.

“Sit down, Captain. Your part in all of this is just beginning.”

He picks up a sickle and makes his way back over to the steps. Sparks fly from the metal as it crashes up onto the doors, but they still don’t budge.

“Those doors are sealed with blood magic,” Rumple calls out. “Even if I were in control of my powers, I wouldn’t be able to open them.”

He throws the Dark One a glare from over his shoulder and begins to smash the door again. Just as his arm pulls back, an invisible force takes hold of him and he finds himself glued to the cage bars, with the Crocodile’s hand around his throat.

“You want to kill me, _try!_ It’s been centuries and you haven’t managed it yet.”

Rumple gives him a sick smile before he leans closer and squeezes his hand tighter.

“How easy it would be to snap your neck,” he whispers almost to himself. “I’d take your head and put in a jar on my shelf.”

Killian grinds his teeth but doesn’t struggle, he knows it’s pointless. “You mean on a _bar_ in your _cage._ ”

“You’re lucky she wants you alive,” Rumple hisses. “It’s the only thing that is saving you right now. Though it would be justice, because of you, my son had to grow up without a mother. Shall we make your child grow up without a father?”

His heart stops and fear falls over him. In the hundreds of years of his life, death has never scared him, if he died for his vengeance, he always believed it would be a justifiable way to go, but now, there’s so much more at stake.

The thought of his child growing and living without him shakes him to his very core.

Rumple lets out a sick laugh. “Does the Pirate finally fear death?” Killian tries to free himself from the Crocodile’s grasp, but it only tightens. “Afraid to die and leave your child an orphan, just like you… just like Emma.”

Rumple flings him back, and he lets out a grunt of pain when his back slams against the doors before he falls to the steps.

“Emma will find me.”

Rumple smirks. “And how do you know that?”

“Because when you love someone, you know.”

The Dark One rolls his eyes and turns his head to the side.

“You once believed the love you had for my wife was true, but look how easily you’ve forgotten about her.”

Killian doesn’t dignify his comment with an answer. He’s long since realized the love he has for Emma is different and far greater than the love he had for Milah. It doesn’t make the love he had for her any less important or any less real, but the Crocodile doesn’t need to know that.

“Stop stalling,” he spits out. “There’s something you want, get on with it!”

Rumple takes a step back and smirks. “What are you willing to do, to ensure your love is safe?”

Killian’s jaw locks and he pushes himself up to lean against the wall. The Crocodile wants to make a deal, he knows this already, but his power is being controlled by the Wicked Witch. So whatever he wants, she wants, and though he knows he should just keep his mouth shut, fight against it, he has to protect them. He can’t just sit there and wait.

“I’d do anything.”

His body is pulled back to the bars before he’s finished speaking and he grunts when he comes into contact with them.

The Crocodile giggles as he pulls a steel bar from behind his back and jams it into Killian’s side.

“I do love it when they say that.”

* * *

* * *

They are patrolling behind Gold’s shop when Emma feels a sharp pain through her chest. She gasps, making Mac and David stop and rush to her side.

“Princess?”

“Emma? What’s wrong? Is it the baby?”

Tears form in her eyes and she lets out a loud sob. Something’s happened, she doesn’t know what but there is something wrong.

“It’s Killian… I can feel it. He’s… oh god… Dad! She did something to him!”

Mac pulls his sword out from his sheath and looks around while David tries to calm her.

“Shh, hunnie. You’re not making any sense.”

Sobs rake through her chest and she struggles to keep herself upright. Her entire body is shaking and it’s in that instant she knows she can no longer stay away from Zelena’s farmhouse.

“I have to…” she sucks in a gasp. “I have to get to the farm house.”

David starts to shake his head. “No, Emma, it’s too dangerous. That’s where she wants—”

Before he can finish, she envisions the trail leading to the farm house and there’s a puff of gray smoke that forms around her. Seconds later, she’s standing outside of an empty field she knows that holds Zelena’s house.

Her skin tingles from the magic she’s just used because she’s never teleported before and if she wasn’t so upset about Killian, she’d be freaking out. But she doesn’t have time for that, she has to get to him.

The cell phone in her pocket starts to ring, but she ignores it and lifts her hands. The hair on the back of her neck stands up as the dark magic of the cloaking spell ripples in front of her.

It’s strong, but she’s stronger.

White light expels from her hands and she plants her feet so the pressure doesn’t make her fall over. Sparks start to fly as her magic counters the dark magic of Zelena’s spell.

She isn’t exactly sure what she’s doing, all she knows is that she has to get to Killian fast.

One final push of her magic and she steps back as the cloaking spell explodes in front of her. Before the smoke is even clear, she’s running toward the house. There’s a shriek as two monkey’s come flying toward her, but she lifts her hand and they are turned into dust before they even touch the ground.

“Well done, darling,” she whips around to see Zelena standing there with a sick smile on her face. “I didn’t know you had it in you.”

With a glare, Emma steps forward, “I told you before, I’m not an amateur, I’m the _Savior._ ” Zelena’s face twitches but she doesn’t say anything. “Where’s Killian?”

As if on cue, the cellar door slams open and Gold comes walking out, dragging Killian behind him by the hair.

“Killian!”

His face is contorted in pain as he yells out in frustration, “Swan, get out of here!”

Gold drags Kilian until they are next to Zelena before he tosses him to the ground. When he sits up on his knees with his right hand covering the open wound on his side, she finally gets a good look at him, tears stream down her face as anger flows through her.

Streaks of blood cover his face, his left eye is swollen shut, and his cheek bone looks broken. The waist coat and shirt he’s wearing is basically in shreds on his body and while he was being dragged, she could see the wounds on his back.

She brings her hands up, prepared to throw her magic, when Zelena holds up the dagger.

“One _spark_ of light magic and the Dark One will end your dear Captain Hook without even blinking an eye!”

“Emma get out of here!” Killian hollers.

“Oh, no, please stay,” Zelena giggles. “I’m just dying to hear all about the lovely bundle you’re carrying for me!”

With a growl, he jumps up and attempts to charge, but he barely gets two feet before Gold grabs him with his magic and dangles him in the air while choking him.

Emma steps forward and cries out, “Stop!”

“You have a decision to make, _Savior_.” Zelena spits out. “You either surrender yourself over to me, or the handless wonder meets his end!”

Emma stands there with her fists clenching at her sides. Gold continues to hold Killian in the air, choking him just enough to cause pain and all she wants to do is blast her magic forward, but she can’t, because Gold is quicker, more powerful than she is, and he’ll kill him as soon as she twitches.

“Make your choice, Emma,” Zelena hollers out.

Tears blur her vision but her mouth stays sealed shut. If she allows the Witch to take her, she’ll win, but if she doesn’t, Killian will die.

Zelena rolls her eyes in annoyance and turns to Gold. “Kill him.”

Gold lifts his left arm and starts to throw black sparks at Killian. Her eyes go wide and fear takes over as he hollers out in pain and his body starts to convulse.

“Don’t do it, Emma!” he cries through his pain. “Ahh, leave! Protect yourself!”

Another round of black sparks hit his body and his clothes begin to smoke.

“No, no, no! Please, please!” she screams at the top of her lungs. “I’ll go with you!”

“Emma, no!”

Zelena holds up her hand and Gold stops, making Killian fall to the ground with a groan. The Dark One walks over and yanks him to his knees by his hair.

“Take me,” she breathes out in defeat, tears streaming down her face. “Just… don’t hurt him.”

She _has_ to do this, there is no way she can let Killian die, she refuses to lose him. When she looks up, she sees the Witch take a step forward with a smile.

“Stay away from her!” Killian hollers out before Gold yanks his head back.

Zelena holds her hand up and a red apple appears.

Emma glares at her, her palms still twitching at her sides. “What is _that_?”

“We’re going to do little role reversal, Emma. Your mother took a bite out of one of these a long time ago and it put her under a sleeping curse, until your oh so charming father came to wake her with True Love’s kiss. But we’re going to change the script just a tad. Take a bite out of this apple, and all your powers will be removed. Can’t have you try to escape once we leave now can we?”

“Don’t do it, Emma!” Killian screams. “Run, go!”

Her eyes move over just in time to see Gold stomp onto his left ankle, the sound of bones breaking echo in her ears.

Before she can move, two arrows wisp past her head right toward Zelena’s heart, but she stops them before they can touch her. A small blade follows, lodging itself into Gold’s chest, but the man barely flinches. Emma looks behind her to see Regina holding her hands up with a fireball, her father with a sword, her mother and Robin with their bows drawn while Mac holds another blade.

“You would think you’ve learned by now your blades don’t work,” Gold calls out before he makes the blade disappear.

“Aye,” Mac hollers and holds up his second blade. “But one laced with Dream Shade does, _Crocodile_!”  Gold tenses and looks back. “Step away from the Captain or this blade goes straight to your head!”

“Think you can stop us all, Zelena?” David follows. “Two arrows, a blade, a sword, and a fireball. One of us is bound to hit.”

The Wicked Witch glares before she brings up her own fireball, “Shall we test it?”

“Enough of this!” Regina huffs and takes a step forward.

Emma jumps and falls to the ground as two fireballs fly past her, Killian’s voice screaming out for her in the distance. A hand wraps around her arm before she’s pulled up, her father, Mac, and Robin stand in front of her while Zelena and Regina battle each other.

But unlike the fight on Main Street, Regina is holding her own. Her eyes move until she sees Gold punching Killian in the face and she moves forward.

“Emma, no!” Her mother grabs her arm. “Regina is distracting her.”

Crying, she shakes her head and tries to pull away, “I need to get to him.”

Her mother stops her again and pulls what looks like a wand from her bag.

“This is the Dark Fairy’s wand. Blue gave it to us,” Snow takes a step forward. “Emma, it can open a portal. You can send Zelena back to Oz.”

She looks over to see Gold give Killian’s stomach a swift kick and she sobs, but before she can grab the wand her father’s voice yells, “Watch out!”

Mac’s fingers wrap around her wrist before tucks his body over her own to shield off any harm. The ground shakes beneath her feet and when they look up, they see Regina fly through the air. Robin rushes over to her as Snow tosses her the wand and before anyone can move an inch, she closes her eyes and points it in the air. The wind starts to whip around them, dirt and grass hitting them in the face as the tornado forms in the distance.

Regina comes running up to her a trail of blood spilling from a cut on her head, “Concentrate on Oz, the tornado will take her back there.”

Zelena moves to teleport, but Emma holds up her left hand and lassos her magic around her to lock her into place, smoke rising from her body.

Just before the tornado crashes through the farmhouse, Emma turns her head and yells to Regina, “Move him!”

Killian disappears from Gold’s side in a cloud of purple smoke just as the wind lifts the Dark One in the air, sucking him into the tornado. It picks up Zelena next, but her hands grasp the fence and she tries to hold on.

“I am _not_ done!” she cries out. “You will see me again!”

Regina yells with a smirk. “Somewhere over the rainbow!”

Zelena growls right before her grip on the fence gives out and she’s sucked into the twister.

The tornado twists and turns until it disappears into the distance. As soon as it’s gone, Emma drops the wand and turns. Her eyes move frantically until she finds Killian half running, half limping toward her.

A strangled sob escapes her throat before she takes off toward him. They meet in the middle and collapse into one another. With their arms around each other, they fall to the ground, his hook on her shoulder, and his hand on her stomach while she grips the labels of his jacket.

“Are you okay?” he asks, his voice filled with pain but also relief.

She pulls back, her chin quivering as she looks him over. “Are _you_?”

He shakes his head. “I’ll be alright.”

Taking a deep breath through her nose, she lifts her hand up to his face and waves it around. Swirls of magic expel from her hand and his skin heals before her eyes. He looks down at his hand and stomach in shock, his body no longer tense from pain, but relaxed and normal.

When he moves his eyes back to her, he reaches up to run his hand down her face until he’s cupping her jaw.

“You’re bloody brilliant, Swan.”

Her hands move to grip his bicep to make sure he’s actually there because she still can’t believe he’s in front of her after three days of misery. She opens her mouth but his grip tightens on her and he cuts her off.

“Why would you do that? Why would you agree to go with her?” he speaks low, but powerful. “She would have won! I told you to run!”

Her voice strained, she sniffles and attempts a smile. “I never listen.”

A puff of air blows across her face while the corner of his mouth turns up.

“You’re impossible.”

“And you love me for it.”

His eyes search hers as his thumb rubs across her chin. “Aye, I do.”

He leans forward and presses his lips to hers in a soft, but demanding way. A gush of wind blows her hair back and she can feel the magic of the curse on the town ripple before it shreds. They pull back and stare at each other with slack jaws and wide eyes.

Regina steps up to them. “It wasn’t Henry… it was you two.”

“What the hell was that?”

He blinks, opening his mouth to speak, almost in disbelief. “It’s True Love.”

Her heart beats wildly in her chest and she stops breathing. She knows without a doubt that she loves him, and that he loves her, but True Love is the rarest magic of all, her parents are the only one’s anyone knows of that shares it.

And now it’s confirmed that her and Killian do, too.

“Why did it work now? Why not before?” She asks in a whisper.

“You chose me,” he murmurs. “That was the test of it.”

A small smile begins to form on his lips as he looks at her in wonder. Just before she leans in to kiss him again, there’s movement out of the corner of her eye. Her parents pull back from a hug, both of their faces filled with anguish.

She looks back to Killian, who gives her a slight nod, the discovery of their new found True Love has to wait. He helps her stand and they walk over to the group.

“Do you guys remember?” Snow nods with a frown on her face. “What is it, what’s wrong?”

“Zelena wasn’t the one who cast the curse,” David mumbles.

“We did,” Snow follows before she smiles softly. “Zelena’s weakness is light magic. You’re the only one who can defeat her.”

“That’s why we paid the price for Regina’s curse,” David explains. “To find you.”

Her brow goes together and she looks over at Killian before she turns back to her parents.

“But… the price of the curse is the heart of the thing you love the most. If you one of you cast it, how are you both still here?”

David and Snow look at her solemnly and she prepares herself for another heartbreak.

* * *

* * *

“Emma,” he groans out. “Love, _please_ let’s go see Whale, just to make sure you are alright.”

The vision of her falling to the ground to avoid being in the cross fire of the two witches is still fresh in his mind, and he just wants to make sure that her and the bean are alright. Not to mention the emotional turmoil she’s still going through after the Charming’s told her the truth about how they brought Storybrooke back…

_Softly, David holds up his hands, takes a step forward, and speaks to his daughter, “Emma, we had to get back to you…”_

_“By you dying?” She cries out in horror, tears streaming down her face. “There had to have been another way! You two_ always _find another way.”_

_“We did,” Snow insists._

_“You didn’t know though!” Emma chokes out. “You didn’t know that it would work!”_

_Her parents are silent for a few moments before David takes another step toward his distraught daughter. Without asking for permission, he wraps his arms around her, and Killian’s heart breaks as he watches his love break down._

_“You were going to leave me!” she sobs into his chest. “I would have never seen you again.”_

_From his spot, he can see tears sparkle in the Prince’s eyes while his hand goes to the back of his daughter’s head._

_Kissing her hair, David rests his cheek against her and whispers, “I’m here, sweetheart. Your mother found another way.”_

Her arms tighten around his waist, she hasn’t let go of him since Regina and the rest of the group disappeared in a cloud of smoke along with Mac.

Mac… that’s another shock. Of all the people he expected to see appear to help Emma in her rescue, Mac wasn’t one of them. He hasn’t seen his old crewmen since they bumped into each other a few weeks prior. He’d be lying if he didn’t admit to himself that it warmed his heart to know that in his absence, his old friend was there to make sure his family was safe.

“What about you?” she mumbles as she pulls back to examine his side. “Are you sure you’re alright… how deep were you—”

Her fingers start to pull his shirt and waist coat up for the fourth time and he stops her. “I’m alright,” he insists. “You patched me up wonderfully, but you… it won’t hurt to get you—”

She pulls him close again and buries her face into his neck. “I will, just… let me hold you.”

He lets out a breath of air and pulls her close. Three days without her in his arms, without knowing if she was okay… it was far worse than anything the Crocodile or the Wicked Witch could ever do to him.

When they finally start to walk toward the edge of the woods, he asks, “How’s Henry?”

She sighs and rests her head on his shoulder. “He’s good, he misses you.”

“Aye?” he asks with a smile.

Nodding, she tightens her hold on his arm. “He does… asks about you every day.”

He lets out a little laugh through his nose, hiding all the feelings of joy in his heart. “Best get back to him, then. How do you propose on us getting home?” He looks around the but doesn’t spot her car. “I don’t suppose you have that vessel of yours tucked away somewhere?”

She smiles and shakes her head. “I have a way, just— there’s something you should know. While you were _gone_ … we were able to get Henry his memories back.”

His face lights up and his smile is large. “I knew you could do it!” He pulls her into his arms and squeezes tight. “That’s grand! I’m so pleased for…” he trails off and takes a breath. “for the lad.” He pauses, his smile fading. If Henry has his memories back, that means he remembers that he’s Captain Hook and not just Killian Jones, his stepfather. The second smile he gives her is weak as he says, “Aye, that’s wonderful news, Swan.”

“Hey,” she starts, reaching up to cup his face. “What’s wrong?”

Tilting his head into her hand, he gives another weak smile. “Ah, it’s nothing, love. Just a… passing thought.” He closes his eyes for a fraction of a second before he opens them with his brow bunched together in concern, “You’re certain he still wishes to see me?”

A little chuckle passes her lips while her thumb brushes over his jaw, “Why wouldn’t he…? He’s our son.”

He flinches at her words and sucks in a breath. He wouldn’t blame the lad for feeling differently toward him with his memories back. But it doesn’t change anything for him, Henry is his son, and always will be.

“Him remembering the man I was,” he murmurs. “I’m not sure I would want that man as a father.”

“Killian…”

“I just want to do right by him, Swan. I’ve _always_ wanted to do right by him. Having him know about the things that I’ve done—”

“He loves you, Killian,” she states. “Memories or not. Just like this baby—” she puts her hand over her stomach. “—is going to love you and he’s worried about you and wants to see you.”

Giving her another weak smile, his eyes move down to her stomach before he places his hand over hers. “I just hope I can be good enough for them…” he looks up at her through his lashes. “for you.”

She steps forward and places her other hand on his face. “You _are_ … more than you know.” Her lips press softly to his. “Do you know what he said to me the night he got his memories back?” He raises his head and his eyebrows tick up in question. “He asked me if _you_ would still want to be his stepdad now that you remember you’re Captain Hook.”

His lips part, a slow breath escaping, before he asks softly, “And what did you tell him?”

“That you love him and just because you remember your past doesn’t change anything. That you will _always_ be his stepfather, no matter what.”

Looking down at his feet, he smiles. “That I do,” he murmurs with a nod. “I’ll be there for him as long as he wishes me to be.”

She bites her lip as her eyes brighten. “Now can we go? He’s been waiting a long while to see you.”

He chuckles quietly, shaking his head in still stunned awe of Henry’s affection. “Aye,” he says, taking her hand. “Lead the way, Swan.”

A small smile appears on her face before they are engulfed in a cloud of gray smoke. Within seconds, they are gone from the farmhouse and standing outside of her parent’s loft.

He blinks a few times and looks around, his gaze flickering to hers and head tilting in question.

“Was that…?” he trails off, a grin starting to creep across his face.

She bounces on her toes and gives him the most adorable smile, “I may have learned a few thi—”

Cutting her off with his lips, he wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her close.

“I’m so proud of you, Swan,” he mumbles against her. “You’re bloody _fantastic_!”

She giggles and he can’t help but kiss her again. Before he was taken, she could barely make a feather levitate- _“Feathers don’t fucking levitate anyway!”_ -and now she’s transporting them around town. He opens his mouth to continue to tell her how proud he is, but is cut off when the front door swings open.

“Killian!”

His eyes snap over to see Henry standing at the door seconds before the lad jumps into his arms and squeezes him tight.

“I knew mom would find you, I just knew it!” Henry giggles into his chest. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”

Killian looks up to see Emma staring at them with tears in her eyes and a small smile on her face, he wants to comfort her, make sure she’s alright, but their son is squeezing him so tightly, he’s afraid to move.

Chuckling, he squeezes back and kisses the top of Henry’s head. “Aye, she found me.”

After a few moments, Henry pulls back to look up at him with a frown on his face.

“Are you okay? My grandpa didn’t hurt you, did he?”

A quick flash of the Crocodile’s sick laughter as he belted him with a metal bar flashes through his mind, but he shakes it off and gives Henry a smile.

“No worse for ware, lad.”

The lad’s lips twitch. “Good. I’m already down one father and I won’t go any lower than that.”

Killian swallows his emotions down before he pulls him close.

“Never, Henry, never.”

 


	29. Chapter Twenty Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you guys know the deal, you're all amazing and double line breaks means POV :D

** Chapter Twenty-Nine **

**15** ** th ** **Week**

Emma is sitting on the edge of their bed kicking her flip flops off with Killian behind her lounging against the headboard reading a book, when she feels it.

“Oh!”

Voice filled with concern, he moves from behind her. “What’s wrong?”

Her brow goes together and she puts her hands to her stomach. The fluttering she felt a few seconds before is gone but she’s almost positive she knows what it was.

“Emma…” he groans and she blinks.

He’s moved to kneel on the ground in front of her and his face shows concern while his hand and hook hover over her.

“Oh, sweetie, I’m sorry,” she whispers and cups his cheek. “Nothing bad. I just… I thought I felt the baby move… but it’s too early.”

His blue eyes go wide and he looks down at her stomach. “Truly?”

“Yeah, but… oh!”

The fluttering is back and she knows then without a doubt it’s the baby and not gas.

“What?” he gasps.

A smile spreads across her face and she grabs his hand to put over her stomach. The fluttering continues and she moves his hand right over it. “Do you feel that?”

His face scrunches together and after a couple seconds he shakes his head.

“I don’t feel anything.” She moves his hand around and pushes it harder against her stomach. “No, love.”

She lets out huff and slaps her hands against the bed in frustration. The fluttering continues and though it feels amazing and life altering, the disappointed look on Killian’s face dampens the moment.

“You can feel the bean moving?”

“Yes, but it’s really early though. I didn’t feel Henry move for a long time after this.” She suddenly becomes worried and looks up at him with wide eyes. “Do you think that means somethings wrong?”

Shaking his head again as he rubs his thumb across her stomach. “No, sweetheart. All the books say that women may feel the baby move earlier in their second pregnancy.”

The worry washes over her and she sits up more. “But what if—”

“Swan, it’s normal.”

“No,” she answers quickly, before he can protest she jumps out of bed and rushes down the steps, ignoring his eye roll. “Mom!”

“Emma, what’s wrong?” Snow steps out of her bedroom, wrapping her robe around her body.

Her father is working the night shift at the station and Snow was probably just about to lay down.

“I think I just felt the baby move,” her mother’s eyes go bright and she steps forward with her hands out, but Emma shakes her head. “No. Killian can’t feel it. It’s too early, when did you feel Leo move?”

Her mother puts her hands on her arms and smiles. “Sweetie, take a deep breath. Everything is fine.”

Killian walks up behind them but she shakes her head again. “It’s too early.”

“It’s not,” Snow insists. “This is your second pregnancy. I felt Leo move a lot sooner than I felt you move. We won’t be able to feel it for a little while, it’s normal.”

She lets out a sigh of relief and falls into her mother’s arms. Snow giggles lightly and rubs her back.

“It says this all in the books…”

“Aye, I told her that.”

She hides her face shyly in her mother’s shoulder and bites her lip. It’s not the first time he’s tried to tell her something about the pregnancy that she hasn’t believed until her mother confirmed it, and she always feels guilty afterwards. It’s not that she doesn’t trust him, but there’s just something different about hearing confirmation from someone who gave birth not too long ago rather than words in a book.

Snow pulls back and kisses her forehead. “Listen to your fiancé, Emma. The books tell the truth.”

She gives her mother a tight lipped smile before she walks back up the steps with her shoulders hung forward.

“Sorry,” she mumbles when they reach their room.

Killian sighs and pulls her to him. His lips press against her nose as he wraps his arms around her.

“I just wish you would listen to me when I tell you things are normal. Do you think I’m reading all of these tales for pleasure?”

She snorts but when he arches his eyebrow at her, she relents. “No. Okay, I promise I will listen from now on.”

He laughs and moves back to their bed. “You said that the last time, love.”

She rolls her eyes and walks over to their dresser, the baby seems to have stopped moving after her little freak out.

“Would you like me to read you the chapter about your fifteenth week?”

“Sure.”

As he starts to read, she pulls her t-shirt up over her head and tosses it toward their hamper before she reaches up under her tank top and unhooks her bra. With a sigh of pleasure, her eyes catch sight of herself in the mirror and she turns to the side. She isn’t showing yet, but her stomach doesn’t seem to be as flat as it used to be.

Crawling up next to him, she cuts his reading off, “What does the book say about me showing?”

“With your build, Swan, you probably won’t start showing until around eighteen weeks.”

With a shove of her legs, she pushes the covers to the foot of the bed, because even though it’s only the middle of May, it’s too hot for their comforter.

“That sounds about right. I don’t think I started showing with Henry until around that time.”

He hums in response while she fluffs the pillow behind her head.

“You know,” he starts with a lick of his lips, eyes trailing over her body. “There is no bulge in the middle from the bean but there are other places that are… _rounder_.”

Her skin immediately starts to heat up as she turns on her side to face him. Of course she’s noticed that the size of her breasts have gone up, she’s supposed to go out shopping with her mother in the following days for bigger bras because hers are starting to get too tight, but it seems Killian has noticed too.

His right hand reaches out and she lets out a little gasp as his fingers trace her collarbone before they tug her camisole away from her body, just slightly, so that he may take a peek. Her core instantly soaks and her thighs rub together while she moves her hand to cover his and forces him to cup her left breast.

Eyes glazing over with lust, he gives her breast a light squeeze and lets the book fall to the floor with a thump before he slides down until his head hovers just over her ample breasts. She swallows the lump in her throat and grips the sheets in her fists as his lips ghost over her.

Voice low, he pokes his tongue out to trace the edge of her camisole. “Beautiful.”

He gives her breast another light squeeze and she lets out a little whimper.

“And sensitive!”

She feels his lips smile against her as he moves to use his teeth to pull her strap down. Before she even has a chance to feel the air on her naked breasts, he’s taking her left nipple into his mouth, making her back arch off the bed while she lets out a sound that’s somewhere between a moan and a sigh.

With a soft growl, he begins to trace wet circles around her nipple, teasing her with long strokes of his tongue, her fingers tangle in his hair and she pulls him closer. The ecstasy she’s feeling without him even touching her core has her writhing underneath him in agonizing pleasure.

“Killian…”

He groans into her skin and moves to her other breast, giving her a quick second to think, her hands shoot down to push his cotton pants over his hips. With his lips still sucking on her nipple, he lifts his body and helps her until he’s bare.

Her fingers grasp his hair and she pulls him up to her while he positions himself at her entrance.

“Uhhhh,” she groans out in pleasure when he enters her, thankful again for the sound barrier spell she put around their room.

“Bloody hell,” he moans against her lips.

She lifts her hips and grinds herself against his pelvis as he thrusts into her softly, her nails claw and dig into his back before she grasps his waist and pulls him down.

“Harder… faster…”

His eyes close and his brow scrunches together. She can tell he’s struggling, he’s always been open to do anything to please her, but ever since he’s learned of the pregnancy, he’s made it a point to take her slowly, scared for hurting her, but she wants more.

Her hands move down to grip his ass and he groans into her neck.

“Emma…”

She tightens her inside muscles and he chokes before licks his way back down to her breasts. Her legs wrap around his waist and she uses them to make him go faster.

Her voice strained and pleading. “Please.”

With a growl around her nipple, he finally caves and thrusts into her hard. An ‘oompf’ escapes her lips before she’s begging him to do it again. Abandoning all his restraint, he starts pounding into her over and over, banging the bed loudly against the wall while he lets out harsh grunts with each thrust.

Low and dripping with lust, he begins to speak in her ear. “Princess likes it hard, doesn’t she? I’ll make sure you feel me every time you sit down… gods, you’re so _bloody_ tight!”

Her teeth bite down onto his shoulder and she falls around him far sooner than she wishes too. His right arm goes under her leg and hooks it over his elbow while he continues to pound into her. By the time her second orgasm rolls around, she’s past the point of knowing anything but the feel of him inside of her.

His thrusts become erratic and she pulls his face to hers, he pushes his tongue into her mouth and releases inside of her with a loud groan.

Killian’s arms start to shake as he holds himself above her before he finally collapses to the side. They both lay there in silence, the only sound is their harsh pants.

“Fear of hurting me over?”

He lets out a breathless chuckle and pulls her into his arms. “For now.”

She smiles and can’t help but think of their future couplings.

* * *

**17** ** th ** **Week**

Emma wakes one day to find that they were very _wrong_ in their assumption that she wouldn’t start showing until her eighteenth week, because it seems like overnight, a slight bump forms on her stomach.

She spends a good hour in the bathroom staring at her reflection, until she hears Killian walk up the stairs and quickly dresses.

It’s stupid, she knows that, they are _confirmed_ True Love, there’s no way he’s going to leave her because she’s gained a little weight. But her fears eat away and her emotions take over.

So for the next week, she makes sure to wear clothes that are looser than normal and avoids unchanging in front of him.

Until one morning she’s left alone in the loft, watching Leo and the heat starts to get to her.

It’s the end of May and they live in Maine, but with her being pregnant, seventy degrees feels like ninety.

She’s walking out of her parent’s bedroom after putting Leo down for his morning nap, wearing nothing but cut off jean shorts and a white sports bra when Killian comes back from dropping Henry off at school.

“Swan, I’m hom—”

He stops in the middle of his sentence when she turns toward him. Her brow goes together as she watches his eyes move to her stomach.

It’s not that she’s huge, not yet, anyway, but there is roundness that’s noticeable to anyone that _really_ looked, honestly she’s surprised he _hasn’t_ noticed it, he studies her on a daily basis.

She quickly moves to pick up her shirt that hangs off the back of a chair when he jumps forward and stops her. His hand and hook go to her waist and his eyes stay on her stomach. When she tries to pull back, he tightens his grip and his mouth falls open.

“When?”

She clears her throat. “Um, last week? Guess we were wrong about the eighteenth week thing.”

His hand moves from her waist and his fingers ghost over the bump.

“That… you’re… the bean?”

Swallowing the lump in her throat, she nods. “I was hoping you wouldn’t notice.”

His eyes snap up and his brow goes together. “Why?”

Her mouth open and closes a couple times before she finally shrugs. “Um, well, my body is changing, Killian. I’m getting… _fatter_ and I don’t know—”

His growl cuts her off. “You are _not_ fat! You are with child.” The second part comes out softer and he looks back down at her stomach. “ _Our_ child is growing inside of you and it’s the most beautiful thing I have ever seen.”

Tears sparkle in her eyes before their lips meet, and that’s the day she realizes her Pirate has a ‘pregnant with my child’ kink in a _big_ way.  

* * *

* * *

**19 th Week**

“I think it’s a girl,” Henry tells him as they stroll the streets of Storybrooke after school.

Ever since the lad got his memories back, he’s been spending most nights with Regina, making up for the lost time with his adoptive mother, but after school, he comes to the loft to spend time with them before he leaves.

It’s hard for both Killian and Emma to not have him around all the time, but they understand, so he makes a routine to pick the lad up from school every day so they can spend time together just themselves. It’s only a ten-minute walk and he could easily ride with his grandmother when she leaves to go home, but it means everything to Killian, and Henry too.

He smiles down at him and lets out a chuckle. “Really?”

Henry nods and adjusts the strap on his shoulder. “I mean, if it’s a boy that would be cool, but something tells me the baby is a girl.”

“Care to wager on that?”

The bean could quite possibly be a little lass, but he thinks it might be a boy. They’ve gone twice to try and find out the gender, but each time, the bean has been curled into a position making it impossible, leaving both he and Emma disappointed.

It looks like the bean has taken up some of his mother’s stubbornness even before birth.

Henry smirks and his heart skips at how much he looks like Bae in that moment. “Always.”

Killian reaches up rub his jaw as he contemplates the terms of their wager. It’s not the first time they’ve done this, back in New York they used to do it all the time, Henry usually winning more than he, but there were times he came out the victor.

“Aye, if it’s a little lad, after the bean is born, and when your mother is up for it, you owe us three nights, chosen at will, for babysitting duty so that we may go out.”

“Deal,” Henry answers before he points his finger at him. “But if it’s a girl, you have to buy me ‘The Walking Dead: Compendium’ volumes two and three.”

His eyebrow arches, the comic sounds familiar to him, only because he asked for it last Christmas and Emma told him no, saying that it was too mature, but if he’s asking for volume’s two and three, it means he already has volume one.

“And how you came about acquiring volume one when your mother refused to buy it for you is…?”

Henry’s cheeks tint. “I made a deal with Robin, I taught him how to use a cell phone, he bought me volume one... Don’t tell my mom’s.”

A snort escapes him and he shakes his head. Though it pains him to admit, it seems the lad has also acquired some of his grandfather’s skills at making deals.

“On my honor.”

“Good, because it’s going to be a little Pirate Princess.”

“Pirate Princess, huh?”

“Oh yeah,” he says with a nod. “Half of you and half of mom, split right down the middle.”

Killian’s heart swells at the thought. Part of him is still coming to terms with the fact that he and Emma are True Love, and even though he knows she’s pregnant with his child, her stomachs growing rounder with each passing day, it’s another thing he struggles to believe.

In just a couple months, there will be a person in this world that shares traits of Emma _and_ him. He just hopes it’s none of his dark traits.

Henry begins to speak again, breaking him out of his thoughts. “Can I help with the name if it’s a girl?”

Wrapping his left arm around his shoulders, he says, “Course, lad. We would have had you help with the name for a boy, but your mother chose that all herself.”

His little face breaks into a big smile and Killian can see the excitement floating around his eyes. They continue to walk, Henry telling him about his schooling and how he spends time with Roland. It brings him happiness to see how fondly his son talks about Robin’s boy, it’s almost like he’s getting a glimpse of the fondness he will feel for the bean.

“How’s mom doing? Sleeping any better?”

Killian sighs and scratches the back of his neck lightly with his hook. He’s had a total of about ten hours of sleep in the last three days due to Emma’s restlessness. When she isn’t complaining about ‘restless leg’ or running to the bathroom because she’s sick, they’ve had to throw out all flowery scented candles in the loft because the smell ‘made her skin crawl’, she’s having nightmares that are waking her up and keeping her from falling back asleep.

It’s normal, both the books and Snow has told him, it’s just her inner anxieties coming through in dream form. The night before, he woke to her sobbing next to him. She had a dream that every time they went out, whether it was to Granny’s for dinner or down to the docks to watch the sunset over the ocean, when they left, she always forgot the bean and left him alone.

It had her so upset, all he could do was hold her, whispering to her how it was just a nightmare, while she cried.

He felt completely helpless.

“She’ll be fine,” he insists with a tight lipped smile as they approach the outside of the loft. “ _Hopefully_ , we’ll walk upstairs and she’ll be taking a much needed nap.”

“You and I both know that’s not happening.”

Killian chuckles because even though he wishes the lad is wrong, he knows deep down he’s right. Emma taking a nap during the day is rare, she’s still worried something is going to happen, it’s been too quiet for too long, and in a town like Storybrooke, that’s just unheard of.

He’s just about to open his mouth to tell Henry not to fret when screaming echoes from the open windows of the loft.

“What do you mean there isn’t any orange juice?! I _specifically_ asked Hook to go to the store last night and get some on his way home from dropping Henry off.”

“Bullocks,” Killian huffs out.

Emma did ask him to stop at the market on his way home the night prior, but he and the lad got caught up in a conversation about sailing and it slipped his mind. By the time he got back to the loft, she was already asleep and he didn’t even think about it.

He knows if he walks up those steps and into the loft _without_ orange juice, he won’t have to worry about lack of sleep, because Emma will surely kill him, especially if she’s calling him Hook, she only does that when she’s incredibly angry with him.

“What do you say, lad, up for a trip to the market right quick?”

Henry giggles before they turn and scurry off toward the store.

* * *

**21 st Week**

“’My dear creature’,” Killian reads softly, voice barely above a whisper. “’I have done with all debate. But you know as well as I, patriotism is a word; and one that generally comes to mean either my country, right or wrong, which is infamous, or my country is always right, which is imbecile.’”

His eyes lift from the pages when he hears Snow walk into the living room.

“It seems my children aren’t captured by the tales of Mr. Aubrey,” she motions to the couch.

He turns from his seat on the floor to see Emma laying behind him on the couch, her rounding stomach just behind his head, napping while the little Prince lies at her feet doing the same.

Voice still low so he doesn’t wake them, he places the book in his lap, “Aye, so it would seem. Hopefully the bean appreciates it, though.”

Snow sits down in the chair to his right. “While I was pregnant with Emma, Charming would read battle plans to her when he thought I was sleeping,” though she rolls them, her eyes show amusement. “When I was awake, he told her about life on the farm.”

A smirk tugs at his lips as he feels his ears heat up, because he’s guilty for that as well. He started to read the tale because Emma was awake at the time, but at night, when she falls asleep, he tells the bean stories of oceans so blue, he could see the dolphins swimming from underneath, cities where the air smells of spices, and women being carried around on jeweled chairs.

Wiping his palm across his thigh, he gives a shrug, “All the books say this is the time that… well, possibly, the bean can hear our voices.”

She places her chin on top of her fist. “It’s good for the baby to get to know your voice. It already knows Emma’s… but hearing yours will establish a bond, as well.”

“Do you believe he’s able to tell the difference?”

With a nod, she adjusts herself on the seat, “I do, you’ll see, once you’re able to feel the baby move, you’ll find it responding to your voice because it knows your daddy.”

Biting his lip to hide his ridiculous grin, his eyes roll when Snow gives him a knowing smirk. Hearing the word _dad_ or _daddy_ always makes him grin like a fool and makes his heart flutter. He can only imagine how it’ll make him feel when he hears the bean say it for the first time.

A timer goes off in the kitchen making them both look over.

“That’s lunch. David and Henry should be here soon, do you want to wake Emma and see if she’s hungry?”

Letting out a sigh, he nods. Honestly, he abhors the idea of waking her. Even before she was with child, Emma cherished her sleep, but now, whenever she’s awaken, he’s lucky to escape with his head still intact. But he knows she needs to eat and if she misses a meal, it might be worse.

Placing the book on the coffee table he stands. Snow steps forward to move her son, but he waves her off and picks the little Prince up himself while she goes to call David. After he places the babe in his playpen, he walks back over to where his love lies. She looks so beautiful, her mouth parted slightly, right hand shielding her eyes from the sun, left resting on top of her stomach, with her knees bent.

He’s lost count on how many times he’s watched her sleep, because he does it so often. He use to do it back in New York, as well, trying to convince himself that it was all real, that a beautiful, gorgeous woman like herself could love a man like him, now, it’s because he doesn’t want to miss a second of being able to look at her.

Kneeling down in front of her, his finger traces her cheek before he softly places it over her bump.

Leaning forward, he presses a soft peck on her lips which makes her stir. When her hand moves, her eyes open before they connect with his.

“Hello, beautiful.”

Her bottom lip pouts in the most adorable way before she groans.

“I know, darling,” he whispers before he leans down to kiss her lips again. “But your mother has made lunch and I thought you might be hungry.”

Emma presses her lips together as her brow creases and he braces himself for her unpleasant mood.

“It’s disgustingly hot,” she spits out before sitting up and wiping the sweat from her brow.

“Would you like for me to get you something cold to drink?”

Her thighs brush together before she looks up at him through her eyelashes and shakes her head. His eyebrow arches but before he can ask her what’s wrong, the door to the loft opens and their son and David walk in. Pushing himself up, he offers her his hand to help her stand, only to stare in confusion as she rushes off to the bathroom.

“Hey,” Henry greets. “Is mom okay?”

Killian gives the lad a tight lipped smile before patting his shoulder, “I’m sure everything is fine. I’ll go look after her, go wash up in the kitchen for lunch.”

Henry gives a quick nod and walks off. With a sigh he carefully approaches the bathroom, David’s look of sympathy not going unnoticed, as raises his hand and taps his knuckles on the door.

“Swan,” he calls out. “Everything alright?”

When she doesn’t tell him to go away, he pushes himself through, but when the door closes behind him, Emma launches herself forward and her lips fuse with his. He lets out a muffled gasp of surprise as he stumbles back.

“I want you,” she moans against his lips and he can feel his cock instantly harden.

“Emma,” he chokes out, her hands currently gripping his ass. “Our family is right outside.”

Her lips move down to his jugular and he has to squeeze his eyes shut.

She shakes her head while she whispers, “I don’t care.”

His head slams back against the door and he swallows. Given her mood changes, he knows there are only two options, first, he can deny her and either have her so mad she’ll refuse to speak to him for the rest of the night, or cry because she thinks he doesn’t want her, second, give in and make her see stars.

She bites his neck and he knows what he needs to do.

Without thinking of the consequences, he flips them so that she is pressed against the door and puts his lips against hers. Before she can react, he tugs her wrists in his hook and pushes them above her head, his right hand working into her cotton shorts with ease. His eyes roll into the back of his head when he feels how ready she is.

“Bloody hell,” he groans against her lips. “You’re positively soaked.”

Pressing firmly against her swollen nerve with his thumb, he starts with a circle motion, one that he knows she loves, while his middle finger tickles her opening. Her teeth bite down onto his bottom lip and he has to use all the restraint he has not to pull down his pants and ravish her, because he knows they can’t be long or the others will begin to suspect something.

His fingers continue to tease her while he works his way to her ear, tugging her lobe into his mouth while she throws her head back with a soft moan.

Releasing her lobe from his teeth, his whispers lowly to her in the voice that always gets her panting, “You must remain quiet, Emma. Don’t want the entire house to know how wanton you are.”

Something he learned back in New York, Emma _loves_ dirty talk. It makes her quiver and drench with need, and he’s all too happy to oblige, never being one to keep quiet himself, and absolutely loving how _wrecked_ it makes her.

He moves his face to hers to see she’s sown her eyes shut while she bites her bottom lip. Taking his tongue, he traces her top lip before he begins to speak again.

“Is this what you wanted?” He inserts his middle finger into her scorching hot center, making her mouth to fall open. “You wish for me to make this tight little quim shiver?”

She nods enthusiastically and takes a big gulp of air in.

“You wish it was my cock, don’t you, love?” A second finger pushes in. “Gods, how you strangle me.”

“Please!”

His left arm pushes a little harder against her wrists while he nips her bottom lip and growls. “Quiet!”

Her legs start to shake while her hips grind down onto his hand and he knows she’s close to the edge. Rubbing up and down over her clit, he pushes his fingers deeper to bring her to completion and presses his mouth firmly against hers, swallowing her moans, while she convulses on his hand.

His heart is pounding in his chest when he pulls away from their kiss and lets her arms fall. Pressing his body against hers, they breathe each other in while they pant, his cock is throbbing in his jeans and he’s just about to unbutton them to take her, the hell with everyone else, when he feels her lightly poke his stomach.

“What was that for, love?”

“Hm?”

Emma gives him an almost drunken smile and he bites his lip at how adorable she looks, cheeks flushed, hair mussed, and eyes glassy… she’s absolutely gorgeous.

“Poking me.”

Her arms wrap lazily around his waist as his brow goes together in confusion while she kisses his chin.

“I didn’t poke you.”

“Aye, I felt—” Again, it’s feather light, but he feels it. “— you did it again.”

She bites her lip to try and hide her grin. “Killian… that’s not me.”

His head tilts in wonder, trying to understand why she is looking at him in that way, when it finally hits him. His eyes go wide and he steps back to look down at her stomach.

“Was that…?”

A watery chuckle escapes her lips right before she nods. His hand shoots out to press against her stomach as firmly as his body was seconds before and he waits, but there’s nothing. Disappointment washes over him when there isn’t any movement after a few moments, but just before he takes his hand away, he feels it.

“Bloody hell!” She giggles while he drops to his knees and presses his cheek against her stomach. “Love, have him do it again.”

“I’m not doing anything, sweetie. The baby has been active all day.”

There’s another poke against his cheek and he _giggles_. It’s the most amazing thing he’s ever felt, he wants to press more firmly so that he may feel better, but doesn’t want to hurt her, so he just kneels there, hand and hook on her waist, cheek pressed to her stomach.

“I can feel him,” he whispers in awe when the bean moves again. “Our baby, he’s there, he’s moving!”

She runs her hands through his hair and leans down to place a kiss on the crown of his head. “I wish you could see your face right now, you look absolutely amazed.”

He pulls back to look up at her with a wide grin, before he wraps his arms around her waist and lifts her as he stands.

“Ah! Killian, put me down!”

Left arm holding her, he opens the bathroom door and rushes back into the loft.

“Lad! Come quick!”

“Killian Jones, put me down!”

Everyone looks up at them from the kitchen table with wide eyes before he deposits her on the couch.

Pushing himself from his seat, their son rushes over. “What’s wrong?”

“Want to feel your little brother move?”

Collective gasps ring out behind them while the rest of their family rushes over as Henry smiles.

Killian takes the lads hand and places it on Emma’s stomach, seconds later, he’s grinning again when he sees their son’s face light up. Feeling so much joy overcome him, he leans forward to place a kiss in Henry’s hair, then Emma’s stomach, and finally, her lips.

“I think you mean little sister?” Henry snickers.

Feeling too elated to argue with him, he just smirks while Emma lets out a sigh and places her hands at her sides. Snow eagerly rushes over, along with her husband, to sit next to their daughter, wanting to feel the bean as well, both chuckling when they do while Henry moves to stand next to him.

“Well,” she starts. “Hopefully we’ll know tomorrow.”

“Actually,” Snow starts. “Regina and I were talking the other day and we were thinking that maybe we can have a ‘Gender Reveal’ party.”

“A what?” Killian asks in confusion.

David places a kiss on his daughter’s forehead before he stands. “It’s something couples do in this world, they have the doctor hide the results until they are with family.”

Killian turns to Emma with a hesitant look. They’ve already waited long enough to know the results and if they _are_ able to get them at their appointment tomorrow, he doesn’t want to wait any longer to find out.

With another sigh, Emma looks over at her mother. “Mom, we’ve waited so long already—”

“And we are only asking you to wait another day. If Whale gets the results tomorrow, Regina can send the invites out and we’ll have the party Sunday.” Snow looks up at him with pleading eyes. “It’ll be fun. Regina and I already have a theme, and everyone can make their own guesses before it’s revealed…”

Killian wraps his arm around Henry shoulders and arches his eyebrow at Emma. He has no doubt that it will only be a day, with Snow’s eagerness to put a party together and the Queen’s quickness of getting the invites out, but it’s still one more day they won’t know. But then he sees the look in Emma’s eyes as her mother explains the theme and he knows they are going to be having the party.

 


	30. Chapter Thirty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here we are! The big reveal! I hope you all are happy with it :D Check out my Tumblr for pictures of the invitation xemmaloveskillianx

** Chapter Thirty **

Emma sits on their bed staring at the invite in her hand. Regina sent it off as soon as Whale walked them out with the envelope containing the sex of their baby, snatching it before her and Killian could even protest then disappearing in a cloud of smoke. 

He was so mad, he yelled the entire car ride home. It wasn’t until she placed his hand over her stomach when the baby moved that he finally calmed. 

She regretted agreeing to the party, too. They’ve waited so long to find out the sex of their baby that in the moment Whale told them he was able to tell, she wanted to know right then. But Regina already got to him, so he kept quiet, even when Killian threatened him, and sealed the results away, something about not wanting to be turned into a toad by the Mayor for telling.

She was upset, then… _now_ , not so much, because the invitation in her hand is quite possibly the cutest thing ever. 

The baby kicks her and she smiles before she places her hand over the spot.

“Hey there,” she whispers. “Tomorrow we’re going to find out exactly what you are. Daddy seems to think you’re a boy, but I think you’re going to be our little Pirate Princess.”

She’s loved that nickname ever since Henry mentioned it to her a couple weeks ago, apparently he was with her in thinking that the baby was a girl, smart kid.

Her cell phone starts to ring from her night table and her brow goes together when she sees that it’s Regina.

“Hey, everything okay?”

“Miss Swan, will you tell your pirate to stop having Robin do his dirty work for him? He has less than twenty-four hours left until the party and if I’m not telling our son, I’m sure as hell not going to tell Robin.”

“Um, what are you talking about?”

Regina lets out a frustrated sigh. “It seems that Hook and Robin believe me to be stupid—”

She looks up to see Killian stomping into the room with his own cell phone to his ear. When he sees her, he gives a quick smile before he mumbles into his phone.

“Gotta go, mate. Let me know… thanks.”

Emma squints her eyes at him and his face shows a mask of innocence before he walks over to give her a quick kiss.

“—earlier this morning, Robin told me he didn’t want to know the sex of the baby, said he wanted to find out with everyone else tomorrow, then he spends the day with Charming and Hook, and suddenly he has a change of heart.” Regina explains. “He’s doing everything but outright asking me. You would think that a Prince, Thief, and three-hundred-year old Pirate would come up with a better tactic than this.”

Her mouth drops and her gaze snaps back up to said Pirate who is currently getting undressed. He must feel her eyes on him, because he looks at her in question.

“Don’t worry, Regina,” Killian’s body goes tense when he hears the Mayor’s name. “I’ll have a nice chat with _Hook_.”

He flinches at his moniker, knowing he’s in trouble when she calls him that, but continues to undress. Regina grumbles something about idiotic men before they hang up. She places her cell back on the end table and looks at him with a smile.

“Hello, _Hook._ ”

He finishes taking off his brace, clad only in his black boxer briefs and smiles.

“Hello, gorgeous.”

_Flirting, another sign that he’s been up to no good._

Her arms cross over her chest and she leans back against the headboard with her eyebrow arched. He saunters over to the bed with a smirk, before crawling over to her and kissing her engagement ring.

Voice laced with sarcasm, she smiles at him, “What did _you_ do today?”

“Helped your father at the station, thought of nothing but your delicious quim and how I couldn’t wait to have a taste.”

A shiver runs down her spine, he’s trying to seduce her, but she must stay focused. “Is that right?”

His tongue runs over his top teeth and he nods before he moves to trace kisses up her right arm. Her eyes close as she feels herself start to get turned on, her hormones have been running wild lately, they’ve had sex five times in the past three days, but she has to stay strong.

“Mmhm,” he answers once his lips find her neck.

“Because I just got a phone call from Regina who told me Robin keeps asking her what the sex of the baby is.”

Nipping at her neck, he replies, “Oh? Fellow must be curious.”

Feeling his hand trailing up her thigh, she knows if he touches her center, there’s no way she’s going to be able to think straight, so she jumps out of the bed and turns to him with a hard face.

“Robin wasn’t _curious_ about the sex of the baby until _after_ he spent the day with you and dad.”

He lets out a huff and drops his forehead down onto the bed. “I told him to be subtle, does nobody know how to get information in this town?”

“Killian the party is tomorrow! Why would you try to find out now?”

With another huff, he lifts his head and sits back on the bed looking more like a pouty teenager than a centuries year old Pirate Captain.

“Excuse me if I’m bloody tired of waiting! We have the results, I don’t understand why we can’t know now. It’s _our_ child!”

“We told them they could throw this party for us and agreed to wait. I know it’s hard but—”

Cutting her off, he sits up and growls, “No, you don’t, because it’s one more thing that Regina knows that I don’t!”

Her eyes go wide at that and she’s suddenly hit with a wave of guilt. When she agreed to let Regina and her mother plan the party, she didn’t realize that he might feel some sort of way about it. He wasn’t the first to find out about her being pregnant, and he’s not the first to know what the gender of their baby is.

Her chin starts to quiver as she feels tears form. Again, she didn’t think about his feelings or what he thought, she only thought about pleasing her family.

“Don’t cry, love.”

By the time he moves to the edge of the bed and pulls her into his lap, tears are streaming down her face and she’s sobbing. “I’mmm… sssorryy. I… I dddin’t…”

Bringing his hand up to her face to wipe her tears, he softly says, “Shhh, I know, sweetheart. You don’t have to apologize.”

“I jusssttt… I just thought…”

“Darling, I know,” he kisses her temple. “It’s fine. The party is a smashing idea, I was just being selfish. We’ll all find out tomorrow and everything will be okay.”

“You cannn ccall—” hiccup “—Regina if you want and find out. I’ll wwwwwwait.”

Putting his fingers under her chin, he lifts her face to look at him. With a soft smile, he wipes her tears again before he taps her nose.

“Now why would I do that? I want us to find out together,” she gives him a look because that’s exactly what he was trying to do by having Robin ask and he rolls his eyes. “Aye, you’re right, I _was_ trying to do that. But we’ll wait. It’ll be nice with our boy and the rest of our family there.”

Her sobs turn to sniffles but she still feels guilty. It’s easy to forget that just weeks prior he was so angry with her because she betrayed his trust by not telling him about the pregnancy because of how happy they are now.

She’ll never forgive herself for that.

“I thought you were upset about not knowing yet, too.” He brushes her hair out of her face while he speaks. “When I dropped you back here this morning it’s what you told me.”

She sniffles again before she leans back and grabs the invitation that her mother gave her.

“I was until I saw this.”

He takes the invitation out of her hand and gasps.

“This is what the Queen and your mother sent out?” She nods and his eyes move back to the card. “Love, this is… Gods… it’s _wonderful_. They even have a hook… and Baby Jones… This is bloody _brilliant_. Remind me to kiss your mother and I guess I’ll be a little nicer to Regina.”

She lets out a giggle and slaps his chest. The baby starts to move and she lifts his stump to place over her stomach, when his lips twitch, she knows he feels it.

Before either can say anything, there’s a light knock on the door that tells her it’s her little brother. She stands and throws Killian his cotton pajama pants before yelling for them to come in.

Their bedroom door opens to reveal her father standing there with Leo at his feet.

“Hook, Hook, Hook!” Leo chants and they all chuckle.

For the longest time, she tried to teach him to say Killian, but it always came out a like a garbled mess. David was the one that taught him Hook, saying that it was easier, and he was right. There isn’t a day that goes by that Leo doesn’t call out for Hook.

They are best buds.

“There’s the little Prince, come here, lad!” Killian says with a smile before he crouches down on his knees.

Leo tramples over to him with a big smile and his arms wide. A new wave of tears form in her eyes at the scene because she’s literally getting to see what her future is by watching Killian with her brother.

He wraps his arms around the baby and picks him up as Leo leans in to give him a slobbery kiss on the cheek before he starts blabbering on about Elmo.

“He wanted to say goodnight to his sister,” David explains as he takes a step into the room with a smile.

Emma snorts and motions to the other two in the room. “Clearly!”

David chuckles and shakes his head.

“Emmm!” Leo giggles out. “Elmo funny today!”

“Was he?” she gasps in surprise as she walks up. “Did you watch him a lot?”

The baby gives a big nod making all the adults laugh before Leo points to her rounding stomach and smiles.

“Bean!”

That’s another thing, they tried to tell Leo that it’s a _baby_ , but because _Hook_ calls it bean, so does he.

“That’s right, lad. That’s our bean and tomorrow we’re going to prove to everyone that it’s a little pirate, aren’t we?”

Leo’s face scrunches together and he looks back at Killian. “I want be pirate!”

“You’re a Prince,” David explains with an eye roll. “They are cooler than pirate’s.”

“Oi!” Killian exclaims, which makes Leo giggle again.

“Dada, I want be pirate.”

David glares at Killian. “Do you see what you’ve done.”

“What can I say, mate, being a pirate does have its advantages!”

Leo giggles and claps his hands. “Bean a pirate!”

A groan escapes her throat and she walks back over to her bed, sitting down with a huff. She suddenly gets the feeling that tomorrow her, Henry and Snow are going to be the only one’s thinking it’s a girl.

“Snow, do you hear this? Your son wants to be a pirate!” her father calls over the rail.

His brow goes together when he’s met with silence and he tries to call out to her again. With wide eyes, Killian and Emma look at each other before David turns back to them.

“She’s ignoring me… is she mad? No, she can’t be,” his voice is frantic. “I did everything she asked today!”

Killian snorts while he lets Leo tug on his necklace as she sighs.

“No, uh, she can’t hear you.”

David’s nose wrinkles in confusion. “Of course she can. Snow! Snow!”

“Dad!” She walks up and puts her hand on his arm, looking over the rail to see her mother cleaning up the living room, completely unaware that her husband is calling for her. “She can’t hear you. I put a sound barrier spell around our room.”

Looking back down at Snow before he turns to her, David asks, “Why would need to put a sound barr—“

Her cheeks tint when he stops mid-sentence, it’s like it clicks in his brain and within seconds, to glare daggers at her fiancé.

Killian bounces Leo in his arms and gives her father a closed mouth smirk. “Your daughter wakes up at all hours of the night, mate. We didn’t want to disturb you and the misses.”

He lies so easily, he almost fools her.

David continues to glare before Killian takes a step forward and passes her brother over. “You know, Dave, the sound barrier works _both_ ways. You can’t hear us and we can’t hear you.”

He blinks, once, twice, before he looks at her then back at the Pirate. Leo continues to babble about Elmo while the three adults stand there in silence.

David open and closes his mouth a couple times before he takes a small step forward and asks softly, “Seriously?”

Emma’s eyes go wide before her face turns to disgust while Killian chuckles and nods.

“Say goodnight Leo, it is _way_ past your bedtime!” her father speaks quickly.

Groaning, she closes her eyes. “Oh god.”

With Killian’s laughter filling her ears, she falls down onto their bed and tries not to think about what her father is going to do with the new information he just received.

* * *

Emma looks herself over in the mirror one last time before she walks out. The free-flowing, knee-length dress she’s wearing is pale pink with colorful floral prints and three quarter length sleeves. It’s light and airy so that she won’t sweat all day and her hair is up with a few soft curls falling down to keep off her neck.

Since the question about whether the baby was a boy or a girl first came up, Killian’s insisted it was a boy, and she’s never argued with him, only told him that it might not be, and has never told him her suspicion that it’s a girl.

But with her pink dress, she’ll be letting him know that she’s officially ‘Team Princess’.

She looks down at the badges that went out with the invitations and smiles. 

According to Snow, people are supposed to wear whatever badge they want to represent. Though it honestly doesn’t matter to her, girl or boy, she’s still having a child with her True Love, but it would be nice to see more people wearing ‘Team Princess’ badges over ‘Team Pirate’.

It will just give her more ammunition against Killian in the future.

Walking out of their bathroom, she opens her mouth to ask him if he’s ready, but stops before the words make it past her lips.

Killian is standing in front of their dresser securing the belt around his waist, wearing his leather pants, a bright red vest with floral print stitched in black thread that she’s never seen before, and his famous low cut, black shirt underneath. His necklace dangles in his chest hair and it reminds her of the pirate that she kissed in Neverland, and she suddenly doesn’t want to leave their room.

“’Bout ready, lo—“

His words halt as soon as he looks up. Her skin starts to heat up as his gaze rakes over her, his eyes glazing over with lust.

A puff of air passes his lips before he shakes his head. “You look _gorgeous_ , Emma.”

Her tongue glides over her bottom lip before she tugs it in between her teeth.

“And you look…” eyes moving up and down his body. “ _delicious_ , Sailor.”

Arching an eyebrow, he saunters over to her with his sexual swagger making her nipples go hard, before he reaches out to grip her hip.

“That’s _Captain_ , Princess.”

Her breathing picks up as he steps into her personal space, and her hands go to his hips.

“Apologies, Captain. What ever can I do to make it up to you?”

She looks up at him through her eyelashes and gives a small pout, making him groan and close his eyes.

“Bloody bad form, Swan. We’re supposed to be at the Queen’s in twenty minutes.”

Fingers slowly moving up his torso, feeling the lean, hard muscles underneath his vest, until she wraps her arms around his neck and whispers against his lips, “So? People are always late to parties.”

Smiling, he brushes his nose against hers and places his hand over her bump, “Not the guests of honor.”

She sticks her bottom lip out and gives her most adorable pout that she knows he can never resist.

Groaning, he rubs his thumb across her stomach, “Don’t look at me like that, darling. You know I would like nothing more than to stay in this room and have you become better acquainted with the Pirate Captain himself, but your mother forced me to swear on my honor that we would not be late,” he gives her nose a peck and steps back. “What kind of man would I be if I were to go back on that?”

Letting out a little hmpf, she mumbles, “A pirate.”

He chuckles before he waves his hand over her outfit, “Truly, Emma. You look absolutely breathtaking. But I can’t help but notice the color of your attire and that badge you are proudly showing.”

She holds back her giggle and as she feels the baby start to move around.

“You never actually _asked_ me what I thought.”

His eyes sparkle with amusement before he reaches over to their dresser, picks up his ‘Team Pirate’ badge and places it securely over his red vest of sex.

“There,” he loops his thumb through his belt and smirks. “It seems we find ourselves at an impasse, Princess, only one shall be victorious.”

Her face softens before she steps forward and places his hand on her stomach, knowing exactly when he feels the baby because a wide grin appears on his lips.

“I think either way we are both victorious.”

He pulls her to him, hand still pressed against her stomach, and glides his lips across her own. Moaning while his tongue touches hers, he starts to back them up and she can feel herself getting excited all over again, but just before the back of her knees touch the bed, the sound of stomping footsteps echoes and their bedroom door slams open.

“I have my hand over my eyes because I don’t want to see whatever is taking you so long!”

They both laugh at their son’s voice before they turn to find that he does in fact have his hand covering his eyes. Emma brushes her hands over her dress as Killian walks up to him. When she finally looks up, she realizes what he’s wearing.

Letting out a gasp, she takes a step forward and puts her hands on his arms to hold them out to his sides, “You look so handsome!”

Henry is wearing a miniature version of Killian’s pirate outfit with the black vest and his ‘Team Princess’ badge attached to his belt buckle.

With a shrug, the boy smiles, “I thought I should represent _both_ sides.”

Killian beams with pride while her tears form.

When he sees them, Henry rolls his eyes with a chuckle, “Man, mom, is there anything that won’t make you cry these days.”

Sniffling, she shakes her head and wipes a lone tear away, “Probably not.” Waving her hands over her face, she takes a deep breath. “Okay, let’s go before your grandparent’s decide to kill us all.”

They arrive at Regina’s house right on time and when they walk out into the backyard, Emma finds herself crying again.

A banner hangs across the archway leading into the backyard that says **_‘Pirate or Princess’_** with a little pirate's outfit on one side and a princess outfit on the other. There are tiara and pirate ship decorations all over, along with pirate and princess themed games for the kids to play. Half of the town is already there and she’s surprised to see that the teams are mostly even, half for princess, half for pirate. Though the adults chose to wear regular clothes, Snow insisting only their family dress up, _“who doesn’t love a little family competition?”_ the kids were dressed up.

Little girls are running around in pink princess dresses while the boys chase them around in their pirate gear.

Emma’s emotions overcome her and Killian has to take her inside until she finds herself calm enough to greet their guests.

“You guys look amazing!” she tells her parents.

Her mother is dressed in a knee length white dress with a lace overlay, ‘Team Princess’ badge pinned to her chest, while her father has on brown leather pants and a white cotton shirt with his ‘Team Pirate’ badge.

“Oi, mate. That’s not very ‘pirate’,” Killian gestures to his outfit. “If you ask me.”

David rolls his eyes. “No, it’s not. This badge is all you’re getting out of me.”

“And he wasn’t even going to wear that!” Snow giggles. “But I made him.”

Emma snorts and looks over her father’s outfit again. “Well, it’s almost pirate. I mean, at least it’s not all proper and look,” she motions to the tare over his shoulder. “It’s even torn, I think it works.”

David gives her a soft smile. “This is what I was wearing when I put you in the wardrobe.”

Sucking in a breath, her eyes move back to the hole. She knows the story, has it memorized by now. Her father held her in his arms as he fought off the black knights all to get her to safety, almost dying in the process.

Tears once again form and she finds herself rushing into her father’s arms. The feel of his hand on the back of her head makes her feel safe as she softly kisses his shoulder where his wound use to be. She wants to thank him for saving her life, for protecting her when she was only minutes old, but she knows if she even attempts to open her mouth, it’ll be nothing but a blubbering mess and it won’t be good to do that in front of a crowd of people.

“Where’s your outfit?”

Henry’s voice breaking up their hug, David kisses her temple before they pull apart and turn to see Regina and Robin walking toward them. Robin is wearing what she assumes was his getup in the Enchanted Forest with a ‘Team Pirate’ badge while Regina is in her usual pant suit.

“I didn’t want anyone to assume that I was giving away the sex of the baby with an outfit before I explained,” the Mayor says to them.

Emma’s brow goes together and she looks at Killian who shrugs.

Regina points to the middle of the yard where there is a big display of what looks like a mountain of gold coins surrounding a chair, with swords and anchors sticking out on all sides, and a large, wooden treasure chest sitting on the thrown.

A treasure fit for a pirate.

“How this works is you are going to open the chest, and fireworks are going to shoot up into the sky, they are going to form into a pink tiara for a girl, or a blue pirate ship for a boy. Now, the spell I did in order for this to happen was simple, but even _I_ don’t know what the outcome will be.”

“Wait,” Emma starts. “How do yo—“

“I enchanted the envelope Whale gave me. It only became unsealed once that chest shut.”

She blinks before she turns to Killian who is staring at Regina with his mouth open. Just last night they had a minor argument over Regina knowing the sex of their child before them and now they just found out she doesn’t know it at all.

“Thank you, Regina,” he says, his voice filled with gratitude. “Truly.”

The Mayor presses her lips together and gives a nod, “That being said…” she waves her hands around, purple smoke appearing around her for a quick second before it vanishes. “This is my choice.”

“Really?!” Snow hisses in disbelief.

Regina shrugs her shoulders and takes out her badge. She’s wearing an all-black, leather outfit, with a purple ruffled shirt underneath, and her hair is tied back with a purple bandanna. She pins her ‘Team Pirate’ badge to the bottom of her vest.

“Oh, Regina, I dare say I’m winning you over,” Killian says with a laugh.

Rolling her eyes, Regina shakes her head while everyone laughs.

Two hours into the party, Emma is walking out of the bathroom after having to pee for about the hundredth time, she seriously thinks the baby is just laying on her bladder at this point, dreaming of the chocolate cake that’s waiting for her when the doorbell rings.

Looking outside, she sees Regina kneeling down talking to Roland and her brother, Roland is dressed as a little prince, while Leo is dressed as a little pirate, almost identical to Henry, she’s taken about a hundred pictures of them already, so she goes to answer it herself.

A large smile appears on her face when she sees Mac, Smee and the rest of the crew of the Jolly Roger on the other side of the door.

“You made it!”

She went to deliver Mac’s invitation personally yesterday and requested for him to get the entire crew to come. Mac was hesitant at first, not too sure how the crew would act in such a setting, they were pirates after all, but she insisted. She wanted to surprise Killian with them being there and had no doubt his crew would behave with the utmost respect.

“Aye, thank you for having us, Princess.” Mac answers with a smile.

She moves aside to let them in and is only mildly surprised to see how clean cut they all are. Each crewmen gives her a slight nod as they pass before she shuts the door behind them.

“This is unwise,” Smee says with hesitance. “The Captain doesn’t know we are here. We should have—“

“The Captain doesn’t know you’re here because this is my surprise to him,” Emma interrupt, making Smee look down in shame. “But if any of you feel that you don’t want to be here, we are not forcing you. You are more than welcome to leave.”

Silence falls over the men while she motions back to the door. Mac glares while Smee keeps his head down, not saying a word. After a few moments, one of the men finally speak.

“It would be nice to see the Captain, Your Majesty,” his voice is low. “We’ve not seen him since before he was taken.”

The rest of the crew nods, their faces each show a bit of hopefulness mixed with wonder. Her eyes move over to Mac who gives her a shrug with a small smile.

“Good,” she says with a smile. “Like I said, this is my surprise to the Captain. You men wait in the dining room, I’ll go get him.” She goes to walk outside before she turns back to the crew. “There are badge’s on the table in there, we are asking everyone to choose if you think the baby is going to be a boy or a girl and where that badge.”

Right before the men scurry off with looks of excitement, the little one that spoke before steps forward with a small smile, “Might I say, Princess. You look very beautiful today.”

“Thomas!” Smee hisses.

Emma chuckles and waves Smee off. “Thank you, Thomas, that’s very sweet.”

“We are all eager to meet the newest member of our crew,” Thomas says as he motions toward her stomach. “If the Captain allows us, of course.”

With her hands rubbing over her bump, she gives him a smile but doesn’t answer. She doesn’t know if Killian will allow the baby to be around his crew, they are a part of some of the darkest parts of his past, parts that he tries not to remember, but that’s why she invited them here. She wants to show him that his past and present can coexist together without trouble.

“I’ll go get him now.”

Thomas nods before he runs to join the rest of the crew, Mac, who stayed, probably to make sure the Pirate didn’t say or do anything wrong, follows behind him.

She walks outside and waves to the people that call out to her. Looking around, she spots Killian standing with Robin as they watch Roland and Leo sword fight Henry on the deck of the small wooden pirate ship Marco made for them as a present. Both men laugh at the children before Killian lifts his bottle to his mouth and takes a sip of his beer.

Just as she walks up, he finally notices her and his eyes brighten.

“There you are,” he greets with a smile, his left arm wrapping around her waist. “Everything alright, love?”

Placing her left hand on his stomach she smiles and looks over at Robin. “Do you mind if I borrow my fiancé for a moment?”

Robin lifts his bottle. “Of course not, Lady Swan. I shall keep an eye on the children.”

She’s just about to thank him when they hear Leo yell out, “Oh, body hell!”

All three of their eyes go wide but before any of them can reprimand him, Roland giggles, “Leo, it’s _bloody hell_.”

Emma snorts while Robin snaps out of his shock.

“Roland!”

The little boy jumps at his father’s tone and she falls into a fit of giggles as both men quickly rush over to the children.

“Little Prince, no! Bugger, your father is going to _kill_ me!”

She continues to laugh as Robin and Killian explain to both boys why they can’t use that term, Henry behind them, also finding it hard to control his laughter.

By the time Killian walks back over to her, he’s running his hand through his hair, “I’ve always believed I’d meet the end of your father’s sword because of _you_. Now I fear it may be because of your brother.”

Tugging him toward the house, she shakes her head as her laughter dies down. “Well, you’ll just have to learn to watch your language. You don’t want the baby’s first words to be _‘bloody hell’,_ do you?”

His face pales and it makes her laugh again. She laces her finger between his and motions to the door, “Come on, Pirate. I have a surprise for you.”

With a sigh, he looks back out toward the yard as they walk into the kitchen, “Swan, darling, we can’t leave. I want you just as much if not more than—“

Giggling, she cuts his sentence off with a kiss. “Not for _that_. But I’m happy to see where your head is at, Captain.”

He gives her a smirk before placing his empty bottle on the kitchen counter and pulling her to him, voice low and husky against her lips, “My heads _always_ there, love. I’ll never not want you.”

“Mm,” she mumbles before she kisses him. “I love you.” He rewards her with a radiant smile before she grabs his hand and pulls him toward the dining room. “Come on, they are waiting.”

“Who’s waiting?”

Biting her lip, she stops outside of the closed door. “This is my surprise for you, I wanted to show you that your past and our future can coexist together.” He tilts his head, his lips forming into a small, confused smile. “That not _every_ part is bad.”

Before he can answer, she opens the door, the crew immediately hollering out, “Aye, Captain Jones!”

Killian’s eyes go wide, his face showing pure shock as his crew claps and cheers for him. She has to put her hand on the small of his back and give him a little push before he finally takes a step into the room. His crew walks up, greeting him with handshakes and pats on the back. From her angle, she can see the smile on his face, so she leans back against the door frame to watch. She knows that he misses his crew, he’s only seen them a couple times since they’ve been back, the last being before Zelena had taken him, and it was because they started a fight at the Rabbit Hole. He went to yell at them, but here they are, greeting him as if none of it ever happened.

It didn’t go unnoticed to her that the crew called him Captain _Jones_ instead of Captain _Hook_ , and probably not to Killian, either. The crew of the Jolly Roger is nothing like the pirate’s people read about or see on TV. They were loyal, had a code, stuck by that code, and loved their Captain, even though their ship is gone, and they no longer sail the oceans, they are still a family, and that’s what she wanted to show him. Just because they all did things, horrible things, in their past together, doesn’t mean they haven’t changed just as he did.

Most of them even have jobs, David told her once. Sure, there’s a squabble here and there, mostly with the Lost Boys who are in town, bad blood still between the group, but it’s usually always handled with the utmost respect. Their Captain respects the law of this town and so do his crew.

It also doesn’t go unnoticed that every member of the crew is wearing a ‘Team Pirate’ badge, of course they all wish for their Captain to have a boy so that he may teach him the ways of the sea.

Smiling, she rubs her bump, something she can’t help but do every five seconds, and leaves the crew and their Captain to spend some time together alone before they make their way out to join the rest of the party.

“If I find one grease stain in my dining room, your fiancé is cleaning it up with a toothbrush,” Regina tells her as she sits down at the table joining her, Snow, and Belle.

Things haven’t been easy for the librarian recently. She thought the man she loved died, then he was brought back only to be the Wicked Witch’s toy puppet, then he was sucked into a tornado and sent to Oz. They’ve all taken the time to check up on her, even Killian.

He stops in the library every day before he goes to pick Henry up for school, sometimes even leaves a little early to help her out. It really warms her heart to see the friendship the two have developed despite their past.

Again, another example of how mistakes made in our past can be forgiven.

She chuckles and shakes her head. “They do take showers, Regina.”

Rolling her eyes, the Mayor doesn’t answer and turns back to the group of women. Emma doesn’t say much, only really speaking when someone asks her something directly, instead she concentrates on the food in front of her. It’s been a never ending battle with her and food the past couple days, it’s like no matter how much she eats, a few hours later, she’s starving again.

Just the night before, her and Killian crossed the town line just so she could go to the drive through at McDonald’s for a cheeseburger at three a.m. because she was craving it.

After a little while, her lower back starts to hurt and she’s fidgeting in her seat. They are due to open the treasure chest soon, something she’s waited all day for, and she doesn’t want the moment to be ruined by pain in her back, also, she really wants a chocolate milk.

Before she can move, her mother stops her while Regina picks up the empty plates from around the table, “What’s the matter? Do you want something?”

Blowing a loose curl away from her face, she answers, “I was just going to get some chocolate milk.”

“Let me!” Belle insists as she jumps up. “Regina…”

“I’ll show you,” she answers before the two walk off.

After a few moments, Snow asks, “Where’s Killian?”

Adjusting herself into a more comfortable position, she motions to the house. “He’s inside. I invited his crew as a surprise, they are just saying hello.”

Snow gives her a beautiful smile. “That was very kind of you, Emma.”

Feeling a blush form on her cheeks, she just gives a shrug and takes another bite of the cake in front of her. Seconds later, a glass of chocolate milk is placed on the table while lips kiss her temple. When she looks up, she sees Killian moving to kneel in front of her. Her mother stands and walks off to give them a moment.

“Hey! Everything go okay?”

Looking around, she sees most of the crew sticking together, while some mingle with Robin’s Merry Men.

“You’re bloody amazing, do you know that, Emma?”

Blushing again, she reaches forward to cup his jaw. “I wanted you to have your people here, too. This isn’t just about me, it’s also about you.”

Leaning down, he kisses her engagement ring and then her stomach. “Aye, another wonderful gift you’ve given me. Thank you.”

She hums when he moves up and presses his lips to hers before kneeling back down.

“It wasn’t any trouble. I went and saw Mac yesterday and asked him to get the crew to come. Smee,” nodding her head over to his first mate. “was the one that was hesitant. He’s really afraid of you.”

Chuckling, he looks over at the Pirate in question before turning back to her and placing his hook on her knee. “That he is. But Mac doesn’t seem too afraid of his Captain.”

She takes a sip of her chocolate milk and giggles. “No, I think I won him over.”

“Aye,” he places his hand on her stomach. “That you did. I dare say if he still had the youthfulness he had the last time we crossed paths in the Enchanted Forest I might be worried, he didn’t even pick the right team.”

Eyes wide with amusement, she sits up, “He picked a girl?”

He rolls his eyes and nods. “Tells me it’s all in good fun, though I’m sure it has everything to do with you and your charms.”

“Well,” she starts before leaning in to kiss the scar on his cheek. “My father _is_ Prince Charming.”

“Right you are, love.”

“I hope he’s not too heartbroken though, I already have the Pirate I want.”

She wraps her arms around his shoulders, his hand and hook going to her waist, and glides her lips across his.

“Guess he’ll just have to settle for the Widow Lucas, then.”

Emma pulls back and gasps, “No!”

He laughs and nods to her left. She turns to see Granny and Mac talking alone in a corner, a smile on the old woman’s face she’s never seen before.

About to comment, she gets interrupted when Regina walks up. “Okay, you two. Are you ready to open the treasure chest?”

Emma looks back at Killian whose eyes grow bright with excitement. He helps her out of her chair while Regina announces to everyone it’s time.

“Now everyone that is ‘Team Pirate’, you’re going over here to the left, and all the ‘Team Princess’ over on the right.”

“Ten gold coins it’s a boy!” one of the crew members yell as they make their way to the middle.

“Bugger that!” One of the Merry Men holler back. “Twenty it’s a girl!”

Both her and Killian laugh while the rest of the crowd starts to shout out different bets and wagers. Money, food, rounds of beer… she thinks she even heard someone say they would run up Main Street naked, but she’s not sure.

“Lad!” Killian calls out. “Come on, you have to help us.”

Henry comes walking up, a big smile on his face, with his Uncle on his back.

“I help?” Leo asks with a big smile.

“Of course, buddy!” she tells him, which earns her a cheer of excitement.

Henry moves to stand in between them with a giggling Leo on his back. They pose so everyone can take some pictures before the excitement starts to get to both her and Killian. They can’t seem to stop moving, and she finds herself actually shaking with adrenaline. In just a matter of minutes, they are going to know if they are having a boy or a girl, something she’s never experienced before.

That quickly, a wave of guilt washes over her. She has a son and never experienced this before because she gave him up without even so much as looking at him when he was born. Oh how she wishes the memories Regina gave her were real, that she kept Henry, though she loves her life and her family, she will never forgive herself for giving him up.

Running her hand through his hair, she leans forward and kisses his forehead before she hugs him close. Leo, unaware of the emotional state she’s in, giggles about her hair tickling him.

“I love you, Henry.” She mumbles against his head.

The boy pulls back and smiles up at her, “I love you, too, mom.”

They stare at each other for a few moments before her eyes flicker up to Killian, he has a small smile on his face as he moves to wrap his left arm around them. As a family, the three reach out and undo the lock on the chest in front of them. Leo giggles loudly as they lift the lid open.

The chest starts to shake and they all take a step back, seconds later fireworks shoot up into the sky, bursts of blue followed by pink forming the words ‘Baby Jones’ before they swirl around in a circle.

Her heart is pounding in her chest and she doesn’t realize she’s holding her breath until they finally get their answer.

Up in the sky, is a very large, very _pink_ , tiara.


	31. Chapter Thirty-One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Every week you guys continue to amaze me. Thank you so much for your love and support with Unbreakable!! Double line breaks mean change of POV.

** Chapter Thirty-One  **

**23** ** rd  ** **Week**

Killian sits at his… well, _Emma’s_ desk at the police station staring at the new picture frame in the corner, his lips tugging into a small smile.

It’s one from the party the Charming’s threw them announcing the sex of their child of he, Henry, Leo, and Emma. The smiles on their faces are large and it always makes him laugh when he sees how their son’s head is thrown back in laughter while his Uncle squeezes his neck.

It was taken just before they opened the chest.

A little lass… he and Emma are having a little girl.

He’s never been more thrilled to be wrong about something in his entire life because he knew the moment he placed his hand on the lock, it didn’t matter whether the bean was a boy or a girl, it was still _his_.

She… she was still his.

Brushing his thumb over the photo one last time he turns back to the paperwork in front of him.

Since Emma is with child, he’s been helping Dave out at the station, something Henry loves to tease him about, especially because the Prince _insists_ he wear that bloody badge.

He argued with him that he was a _Pirate Captain_ , and though he was helping, that _did not_ mean he was the law.

David just laughed and shook his head.

_“A Pirate Captain you may be, Hook, but you’re also engaged to a Princess. Once you two get married, what do you think that will make you?”_

Yes, technically, he and Emma are still betrothed, though they’ve never discussed exactly _when_ they would get married, it didn’t bother him.

They are True Love after all.

But not once did he think of the title that would come with said marriage.

_“Now, what do you like more, wearing the badge and having people calling you Deputy Jones, or having them call you Prince Killian of the Enchanted Forest?”_

He snatched the badge out of David’s hand at lightning speed, grumbling about it the entire day, until he walked into he and Emma’s room in the loft with it still clipped to his belt. When she saw it, her eyes went wide with lust and she ended up riding him until his eyes rolled back into his head.

Perhaps it wasn’t too bad after all.

“Busy day?”

Killian looks up to see Robin walking in with a brown bag in his hand. Sitting back in his chair, he tosses the pen on the desk and gives the thief a nod.

“Hardly. Dave is out taking a report from one of the dwarves,” he explains as the thief sits before him and starts to unload their lunch. “The Pharmacy was unlocked when they opened this morning which means someone must have broken in.”

Robin snorts. “It couldn’t possibly be unlocked because Grumpy left Dopey to man the shop last night in favor for a few pints at the Rabbit Hole.”

Shaking his head, Killian answers in a sarcastic tone, “Now what would ever give you _that_ idea, Locksley? Grumpy _specifically_ explained to him how to lock up.”

Both men exchange a chuckle before they start to eat their lunch.

“How goes the name hunting?”

With a sigh, Killian takes a sip of his water. For two weeks they’ve been trying to come up with names for their daughter only to hit a block at every turn. The prior night, Emma finally allowed him to bring some books from the library home with him, but they still haven’t found anything.

“Exhausting, neither one of us can seem to agree on a name and for the three that we did, Henry didn’t like. It’s bloody frustrating is what it is.”

“Ah, yes, I can only imagine. I’m thankful my Marion came up with the name for Roland while I was away or else I fear I might have been in the same predicament that you are.”

He sits back in his chair and wipes his hand over his chin. Never did he think that process of choosing a name would be so difficult, but then again, he never dreamed such an opportunity would arise for him.  

To name a child…

In the one time he thought about having children, he told himself that he would name his son after Liam, to honor his brother… but then he learned what he father had done and it almost seemed _wrong_.

He didn’t want to replace his brother, he never could even if he tried… then Emma came up with her name for a little lad and it was perfect.

But they are having a girl and he’s three ‘scrunch faces’ away from saying yes to whatever name she may come up with, even if it is after a piece of food.

They continue with their lunch and chat about less important details around town when the phone on the desk starts to ring and Killian rolls his eyes before he picks it up.

“Aye, Storybrooke Police Station.”

“Killian, it’s Snow…”

Her voice is frantic and he instantly goes on high alert. “What’s wrong?”

“Emma and I are at the hospital—” He jumps up from his seat, his heart pounding wildly in his chest. “—Charming is already on his way to come get you.”

“What—”

“She said something doesn’t feel right… it’s probably nothing, but I brought her just to make sure. Regina has Henry, but I need you to get here, okay?”

He blinks rapidly while Robin stares at him in worry. Opening his mouth, he attempts to speak but he chokes on his words. His mind is completely blank, all he can think about is getting to Emma and making sure her and the baby are okay.

“Killian,” Snow’s voice breaks through. “Take a deep breath. Everything will be _fine_. Charming will be there, I have to go.”

Before he can say anything, she hangs up and he feels like his entire world is ending.

“Mate, what’s wrong?”

“I-… Emma—” He looks around before grabbing his keys and stepping away from the desk. “—Emma’s on her way to the hospital. She’s… there’s—”

Robin holds up his hands, “Go! I’ll look after the station.”

With a nod, he rushes out, trying to come to terms with what is happening. Emma is on her way to the hospital because something doesn't feel right with the baby. He can’t remember ever being so scared in his entire life.

Everything is okay… everything _has_ to be okay.

Just as he bursts out the front doors, Charming pulls up, tires screeching on the street. Running forward, David leans over and opens the door for him.

“Dave.”

The Prince nods, “I know.”

They are silent the entire car ride and a million thoughts run through his mind. It’s too early for her to go into labor, she’s just shy of being six months pregnant. But he also knows that if Emma is insisting that something doesn’t feel right, it must be true.

She’s blown off everything as _‘not a big deal’_ , even when it drives him bloody insane.

But now she’s at the hospital.

His entire body is just about convulsing by the time the building comes into view, and he has the door opened before David even has time to hit the brakes.

He races into the hospital, bumping into people on his way, but too concerned about Emma to care. Just as he’s about to run down a hall, he’s sees his future mother in law stand up from a chair in the waiting room.

“Whale has her… he’s examining her now.”

Letting out a stuttering breath, he asks, “Wha… what happened?”

The petite woman places her hands on his arms, “She woke up from a nap and said that something was wrong, she didn’t feel right, almost like contractions.” He lets out a whimper. “I brought her just to make sure.”

Tears start to prick his eyes as he runs his hand through his hair. His body is shaking and he feels like his legs are about to give out. When Snow pulls him into her arms, he lets out a choked sob and squeezes her tight.

He wants to be strong, he wants to not be afraid, but he’s _terrified_.

Emma, Henry and the bean are his entire world and if he loses any of them, he doesn’t know what he would do with himself.

David comes rushing in and he hears his wife explain what’s happening before the Prince places his hand on his shoulder, squeezing it slightly. Though he doesn’t speak, Killian can feel the fear leaking off of him, as well.

They sit in the waiting for _thirty_ bloody minutes before Whale walks out with Emma beside him. Killian jumps up from his chair and runs over to her, his hand hovering over her stomach while his left arm wraps around her.

“What happened? Are you alright?”

Sighing with a nod, she falls into his arms and he closes his eyes.

“She’s fine,” Whale answers with a smile. “She was experiencing Braxton Hicks contractions.”

Killian’s shoulders sag in relief as he holds her close to him. He’s read about them before, though they are normal, and many women experience them, it was still a scary experience.

“What caused this?” David asks from behind them.

He presses his nose to her hair and breathes her in as Whale speaks.

“No one really knows. It happens with pregnant women, now that Emma knows, if it happens again, she’ll be able to tell the difference between them and actual labor pains.” He turns to them. “I suggest rest, maybe a warm bath to help her body relax and lots of water.”

“Thank you, Whale,” Snow says with a small smile.

The Doctor gives them a nod, before he turns and walks down the hall.

“Are you alright, love?”

Shaking her head, she buries herself deeper into his chest and all he wants to do is keep his arms wrapped around her to protect her.

“Take her home,” David tells him with a nod. “I’ll head back to the station.”

Emma doesn’t speak until they are alone in the loft waiting for Henry to arrive, Snow went to go pick him up since Regina told him about what happened and he was worried.

“I’m sorry you weren’t the first to know,” she starts in a whisper. “Dad was on the phone with mom when it all went down, I made him promise to go get you right away.”

Killian shakes his head as he sits down on the couch beside her and places her cup of tea on the table.

“Love, don’t apologize. I’m just happy you were with someone when this happened.”

She’s silent for a couple seconds before she looks up at him, her eyes glassy with tears.

“I was so scared,” she whispers, her voice low filled with fear.

He pulls her into his arms and places her head on his chest. Kissing the top of her head, he tries to hold back the shutter that runs through him and murmurs, “I know. But everything is alright, you and the bean are fine.”

“I thought I was losing her… that she was leaving me.”

Rocking her back and forth, he swallows the lump in his throat and places his hand on her face, thumb caressing the apple of her cheek, “Shh, now let’s not think like that. Our daughter is strong, like her mother, and she’s not going anywhere, I assure you.”

Her head moves and when he looks down at her, he sees a hint of a smile playing on her lips.

“She’ll never leave me, just like her father.”

He smiles at her and gives her kiss after whispering, “Aye, never.”

That night, instead of sleeping, he spends his night watching over her as she sleeps, just to be safe.

* * *

**25** ** th  ** **Week**

Killian was having a very enticing dream involving Emma and some melted chocolate when something starts to poke his nose. Lifting his hand, he swats whatever the offending object is away but when he hears the distinct sound of a giggle, his eyes shoot open.

“Hook!”

Leo stands beside his bed with a big smile on his face, his blue eyes shining bright.

Lifting his head, Killian looks around to find himself alone in their room with Leo, Emma nowhere to be found.

“Uh, little Prince, what are you doing up here?”

The child giggles again and smacks his tiny hand against Killian’s face.

“Up, up up!”

Flinching at the high pitch of the baby’s voice, he reaches forward to stop his slapping and grab his hand. Eyes flickering to the clock, he sees that it’s just past eight in the morning. He usually rises with the sun, but Emma had a rough night and he didn’t end up falling asleep until well after four.

Blinking the sleep away from his eyes, he pushes himself up as Leo attempts to climb onto the bed with him. The little Prince started climbing a couple days prior and no doubt climbed out of his playpen while his mother was occupied.

Killian helps him up onto the bed while he blabbers on about a cartoon and cereal, before he moves to throw his cotton pants and a t-shirt on so that he may take him back down stairs.

“Aye, lad, where’s your sister?”

Leo shrugs before he starts to roll around the covers with another giggle. Wiping his hand down his face, he shakes his head and picks the baby up off the bed. The little Prince tries to fight against him, giggling something that sounds like, _“No bath, no bath!”_ and it all makes sense.

As soon as he hits the bottom step, Snow comes walking out of the bathroom with a smile on her face.

“Okay, Leo time for your—” her eyes widen when she doesn’t see him in his pen before she looks up and lets out a sigh of relief. “Oh, my!” she rushes over. “Did he climb the stairs?”

“Aye, milady.”

He hands the baby over to his mother, with a little bit of a struggle before she gasps, “Leo, no! You can’t climb the steps, that’s too dangerous!”

Holding his little arms out, Leo starts flex his hands and whine, “Nooo, Hook!”

Snow rolls her eyes before Killian leans forward with a chuckle and places a light kiss on the babe’s forehead.

“Is Emma around?”

Struggling to keep hold of her son, she adjusts him in her arms and shakes her head, “She went to the station with Charming.”

His jaw clenches as he cracks his neck. It’s been a discussion they’ve had a number of times, she doesn’t want to stay home, she wants to work, but he feels that she should stay and rest. Some days it’s done without argument, but other days, when she’s feeling a bit prickly, he’s seriously considered tying her down.

There is no reason for her to be working, especially with what happened just the week prior, she needs her rest and less stress as possible.

Snow moves to the bathroom with her son as she calls out over her shoulder, “I told her you weren’t going to like it, but you know how she is.”

“Aye,” he runs a hand through his hair. “Will you be alright here while I go throttle your daughter?”

Leo continues to cry from the bathroom for him and he can hear Snow start to get frustrated. Walking up to the door, he pokes his head inside, “Oi! Little Prince, you be good for your mum and tomorrow I’ll take you and Henry sailing, aye?”

The boy looks up at him with teary eyes, before he instantly stops crying and cheers, “Yay! Henwy!”

He looks down at the woman who gives him an appreciative smile. “I doubt David is going to let her do anything but sit at the station. I would head over now before she sneaks out on him, too.”

With a nod, he rushes back up the stairs to change.

* * *

* * *

Emma taps her pen on the desk as she wills the phone to ring. The only reason her father didn’t argue with her about coming to the station was because she promised to do nothing but desk work, but now she’s bored and wants to do something.

She knows she’s going to hear about it, from both her father _and_ Killian. He hates the idea of her working, especially after the Braxton hicks scare, he wants her to just relax throughout her pregnancy, but if she has to spend one more day in that loft…

She loves her parents, loves her little brother, and she’s so grateful that she has her family… but if they don’t find their own place, she’s going to scream.

One thing she misses about New York is the quiet, whenever Killian and Henry would go out, she would be left alone in the apartment to unwind and just enjoy being by herself for a couple hours. But here, her mother is always around asking her how she’s feeling, and Leo, bless his little heart, _loves_ touching her stomach.

Whenever the baby moves, he shrieks in excitement and jumps up and down.

It’s driving her up a wall.

Just the other night, she woke up craving a peanut butter and jelly and she didn’t want to wake Killian, so she went to the kitchen to make it herself, but ended up waking her father by accident who insisted on helping her.

All she wants to do is be able to make a sandwich her damn self!

She’s just about to go out on a patrol when her father comes over the radio and tells her that he’s heading over to Granny’s. Not wanting to sit there any longer, she gets out of her chair and grabs her keys.

Turning to head down the hall, she jumps, placing her hand over her chest. “Jesus! You scared the shit out of me.”

Killian stands in the doorway with his thumb looped through his belt and his eyebrow up. It’s five minutes till nine and she thought she had until ten thirty, _at least_ , before he woke because she knows that even after she was done being sick last night, he stayed awake to make sure she was okay.

It’s just what he does.

“What do you think you’re doing, love?”

Shaking the keys in her hands, she shrugs. “I thought you would still be sleeping.”

“The little Prince has learned how to not only climb out of his pen, but also climb the stairs. Seems he saw it fit to wake me when he didn’t want to bathe.”

Rolling her eyes, she can’t help her huff of frustration. “Great, one more thing we have to worry about.”

He tilts his head, eyeing her, but before he can ask she waves her hand.

“I have to run, Granny is having trouble with one of the Lost Boys, I was just—”

“Going home and allowing your father to handle it?”

“I thought we talked about this,” she sighs.

“I talked,” he steps into the station. “You walked away, what are you doing?”

“I’m working, Hook, what does it look like I’m doing?”

Nodding, he looks around, “Aye, I can see that. I thought we were to spend the day together.”

Voice low, trying to keep calm, “We are. I just wanted to come in for a couple hours… stretch my legs a little.”

He sighs and runs his hand through his hair. “Why don’t you head back to the loft, Swan. I’ll help your father and meet you—”

“I can’t sit around and do nothing!” she huffs out. “I’m not- a… a _housewife._ I can’t be barefoot and pregnant while you go out and provide for us, I don’t work that way!”

Pinching his brow together, his voice drips with confusion, “I never asked for that!”

“I’m not my mother!” He balks at her words and steps back. “I’m not going to be able to carry this baby and look gorgeous. I have to move around in order to lose all this weight!”

His mouth pops open and it finally registers what she said. It’s the _one_ thing she’s kept to herself this entire time and it’s been slowing eating away at her.

She’s disgusting looking, she doesn’t know how anyone stands to look at her. Her face is rounder, cheeks always look puffy, her arms, something she once use to be proud of, look like her own personal built in floaties, and she doesn’t even want to get started on her thighs.

If it wasn’t so _fucking_ hot out, she’d wear large, baggy sweat pants so no one would be able to see them.

She often wonders how her mother looks so fabulous after having a child. It took her two and a half years after she first had Henry to lose all of the extra baby weight, but Snow? If possible, she looks even _more_ beautiful than she did before she was pregnant.

How the _fuck_ is that possible?

It’s seriously shocking that Killian even wants to touch her. Just last night, before she started to get sick, he tried to initiate sex, but she was bitchy and kept pinching her flab, so she wasn’t in the mood. Of course he didn’t even flinch at the rejection, simply kissed her cheek and offered to give her a massage.

The term ‘ruthless pirate’ not really coming into play.

Tears forming in her eyes, she feels embarrassment wash over her, so she shakes her head, “Nothing, it’s stupid. Forget I said anything.”

She attempts to walk over to the filing cabinets, but he catches her arm.

Voice low, he steps forward, “If it’s something that is weighing on your mind, love, it’s not stupid.”

Biting her lip, she stares at his boots before finally looking up at him. His eyes show nothing but love and when he gives her a slight nod, she finally breaks.

“I’m a beached whale!” she whimpers. “It’s like I’ve completely passed the curvy part and have gone to a sumo wrestler!”

He blinks. “Is that what you truly think of yourself?”

Waving her arms in the air, “I’m a balloon, and I’m not even at full size yet! It’s only going to get worse from here, you know!”

Arching his eyebrow, “Worse? How can you not see how bloody gorgeous you are?”

Letting out a watery chuckle, she nods sarcastically, “Oh yeah, so gorgeous, five foot something and kind of chubby around the middle.”

Before she’s finished, he grabs her wrist and pulls her into the office, closing the door behind them and drawing the curtains down on the glass windows.

“What are you doing?”

He whirls around, placing his hand and hook on her waist and backs her up until she’s stopped by the desk.

His voice is low and husky, his lips are inches from hers, “Showing you what I see.”

Her body is turned so that she faces the desk and she lets out a gasp when his hand trails up her arm, fingers ghosting over the hem over her V-neck t-shirt.

When he speaks, his voice is like liquid fire, “You are the most beautiful woman in all of the realms.”

His face nuzzles her neck and her breathing starts to pick up. His hand reaches under her t-shirt to cup her breasts and she lets out a mix between a moan and a squeal. Wrapping his hooked arm under her belly, he rubs the cold metal on her thighs and it sends a shiver through her.

Squeezing her left breast, his lips brush against her ear as he murmurs, “I dream of your breasts, Emma. Sucking and licking them for hours on end. I dream of the time back in New York… you remember it don’t you, darling?”

She swallows and her eyes close as she gives a sharp nod.

“I slid myself in between these lovely breasts… Gods, how soft your skin was, would you allow me to do it again?”

“Yes!” she moans.

His thumb brushes over her nipple and when she tries to reach back to touch him, he snags her wrist with his hook and forces it back down onto the desk before he removes his hand from her breast and places it over her stomach.

“This, my love,” voice low and husky. “I can’t think of anything more stunning. We did this… together, we made this child.” He nips at her earlobe. “I would never wish to _claim_ you, Emma, one of the things I love about you is how strong and independent you are, but _this_ , well, this tells me how much you are mine, and how much you love me… by baring our child.”

Her fingernails dig into the wood of the desk, her core is soaked and she feels like she’s close to completion and he hasn’t even touched her yet.

“Heavens above, Emma,” he huffs before he moves to rub her thighs again making her breath hitch as the curve of his appendage comes in contact with her aching center. “Seeing you swollen turns me on so bloody much—” he presses his hardness into her backside.”—all hours of the day, all I want to do is take you, and show you much.”

Entire body shaking, she feels dizzy with lust and she knows if he presses any harder with his hook, she’s going to fall over the edge.

“Bend over and grab the desk,” his voice is dark and dripping with want.

As she bends, he takes a step back to yank her shorts down to her ankles, the cold air hitting her wet center and the sound of his zipper make her grip the side of the desk. He kisses her between the shoulder blades as he rubs himself up and down her, coating the tip of his cock in her juices.

“I love you so much, Emma,” he moans. “So _bloody_ much.”

Before she can respond, he pushes himself into her and she tightens instantly. Her cries of pleasure echo off the walls, drowning out his groan.

“My Goddess,” he breathes out, gripping her hip and pushing into her deeper. “My siren calling me home.”

His thrusts are long and steady, pushing her up on her toes, hitting the spot that has her close to the edge again. Their skin slaps together and her arms start to shake as she fights to keep herself up, he must sense this, because seconds later, his hooked arm wraps under her breasts and pulls her back to him as he starts to pick up speed.

“So,” –thrust— “bloody,” –thrust— “ _gorgeous!_ ”

Hand leaving her hip, he presses firmly against her clit, rubbing circles before pinching it in between his fingers. His left bicep tightens around her torso as she crumbles into a mess of loose limbs and twitching muscles. It’s not long after that his thrusts become sporadic and he’s spilling himself inside of her.

She’s not sure exactly how they untangle from each other, all she knows is that he takes care of her with such love, caressing her still tingling skin, and pressing soft kisses to her hair like she’s the most precious thing in the world.

When he takes her back to the loft, he once again shows her how beautiful he thinks she is by kissing every inch of her skin, telling her how much he loves a random part of her body…

Her knees… her fingers… her nose…

Before he’s even halfway done, she’s starting to think she believes him, and around ten, as they both lay together in a mess of tangled limbs, she finally does.

The next day is Sunday and they both plan to spend the morning laying around until it’s time to pick their son up, but just after six, Leo climbs into their bed, waking them. He’s apparently mastered the art of climbing out of his crib, as well.

Eyes moving over her little brother and connecting with Killian, she knows without either of them saying a word, they are thinking the same thing….

They need to get their own place.


	32. Chapter Thirty-Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i’m posting this without the read through because i’m about to go get my christmas tree! so if there are any mistakes… pixies did it :D

** Chapter Thirty-Two **

**29** ** th ** **Week**

Emma’s eyes move over the paper as she reads the ads for the open apartments in Storybrooke while she chews on her food. They told her parents two weeks ago they were going to look for their own place, and of course, they both got upset.

They didn’t want them to move out, loving having their family under one roof, but after the other morning, her mother now has a better understanding.

_Coming out of their bathroom, Emma lets out a frustrated sigh and puts her hand on her hip._

_“If your daughter does not stop sitting on my bladder, I may scream.”_

_She waddles over to their dresser as Killian chuckles from across the room before he walks over to her._

_Wrapping his arms around her, he rubs his hand over her bump, their daughter instantly kicking at her father’s touch._

_“Why is that whenever you’re feeling ill, or unable to sleep, she’s_ my _daughter?”_

_She opens her mouth to answer him, but there’s a sharp kick to her stomach._

_“Ah!” she hisses out, one hand going to her stomach the other to the dresser to brace herself._

_Voice dripping with worry, his eyes look her over, “What’s wrong?”_

_There’s another kick making her breathe out through her nose. “I’m fine, she’s just… very active this morning.”_

_He hums, before kissing her cheek and turning her around. Getting down on his knees, she smiles as he starts to speak to their daughter._

_“Hey there, bean—” the baby moves. “—can you do me a favor and stop kicking?” The baby moves again, kicking his hand. “I know you’re excited to see us, but it’s not time yet and all this kicking is hurting your beautiful mum. If you do this for me, tonight I’ll tell you the tale of your Uncle Liam and my first adventure together in the Royal Navy.” The baby gives one final kick before he leans forward to place a soft kiss on her stomach. “Thank you, little love.”_

_She rolls her eyes when she doesn’t feel any movement because no matter what she does, or how much she begs, it’s not until the baby hears Killian’s voice that she finally listens._

_The cold from his hook as he runs it down the back of her thighs makes her shiver. His fingers move to tug her shorts and she looks down at him with her eyebrows raised._

_Smirking up at her, he runs his tongue over his bottom lip. “I can’t very well go the day without a good breakfast, can I?”_

_Her cheeks flush and she can feel her center throbbing. The shorts are half way down her legs when it happens._

_“Emma, I was just looking through this catalog and found the most ador—” her mother’s voice calls out as she pushes herself into their room._

_Emma jumps while Killian tries to help her quickly pull her shorts back up._

_“Oh!” Snow gasps out before she throws her hand over her eyes. “I’m so sorry! I thought Killian left with your father!”_

_He stands, scratching behind his ear trying to hide his own embarrassment._

_“I’ll ju-just… go back downstairs,” Snow mumbles before she backs out of the room._

_Backing away, Emma covers her face with her hands and groans out, “Oh my god!”_

_Flopping down on the bed, she lays back and tries not to start crying._

_“Perhaps we should put a little more effort in looking for a place, love.”_

_“You think!?” she cries out._

They started to really look that day. It’s been almost as frustrating as trying to decide on a name for their daughter, which they still haven’t done yet, because Killian and Henry are _frustrating_ as hell.

Every name she has picked out they’ve both disagreed on and the names they picked out were just…

She absolutely _refuses_ to name her daughter _Oceanita_ , even if Killian does think it’s clever and Henry thinks it’s ‘neat’.

Slapping the paper shut with a frustrated growl she downs her strawberry milk. There is nothing but two bedroom apartments and that’ll be fine for a little while, but once the baby is born, she’s going to need her own room, and she doesn’t want to make Henry sleep on a couch again or share his room.

He doesn’t complain about it when he stays at the loft, but she can tell he misses his own space just by the way he constantly brings up his room at Regina’s.

Rubbing her stomach when her daughter kicks, she mumbles, “Why couldn’t Regina make bigger apartments? Oh, that’s because she wanted to make sure _no_ one had any happy endings in this town.”

She shoves the paper away and attempts to stand when her phone beeps.

**What are you wearing? – K**

Pressing her lips together, she glares at the screen of her phone before answering.

**A burlap sack. – E**

**Oh, baby, you’re turning me on. – K**

Her leg starts to bounce up and down as her frustration climbs.

**You get turned on by chubby girls in burlap sacks now? – E**

**That’s the woman of my dreams, don’t you know? – K**

She can feel the corners of her lips tug before she forces them to stay straight. Damn him for always being able to make her smile. At least he doesn’t know.

**You smiled. – K**

_Stupid pirate._

**No I didn’t. – E**

**You’re a terrible liar, Swan. – K**

She sticks her tongue out at her phone and puts it back down on the table refusing to give into him. When it beeps, she leans over and glares at it as she reads the message.

**And now you either rolled your eyes or stuck your tongue out. – K**

**I dislike you right now. – E**

Placing the phone back on the counter, she pushes herself up and makes her way over to the bathroom. The loft is empty, her mother and Henry are at school while Leo is at daycare. She’s bored out of her mind, but going into the station is not happening because now that she only has a month left, it’s _too dangerous_ according to her father and Killian.

Even after her mother almost walked in on them, Killian was still unsure if they should move while she was pregnant, not wanting to put more stress on her than necessary, but when she reminded him the stress she was having from not having their own place and going crazy, she might have gotten high pitched and frantic with her explanation, he finally agreed. He’s supposed to pick her up in an hour so that they can check out some of the apartments around town, even if they all do seem hopeless.

She’s washing her hands when she hears the loft door open. Walking out, her brow goes together when she sees Killian with a smirk on his face.

“What are you doing here, you’re not supposed to be here for a little while.”

He waves his hand in the air and walks over to her, “Well, when my love tells me she that she dislikes me, I make it a point to come to her side right away to correct what it is I’ve done wrong.”

Slapping his hand away, she walks around him back to the kitchen, calling over her shoulder, “You’re on duty, Deputy. It’s _bad form_ to come home and try to seduce your pregnant fiancé.”

“Who said anything about seducing?” he whispers into her ear.

He moved so quickly she didn’t even hear him, but that doesn’t stop her heart from picking up at the feel of his lips on the shell of her ear or her breath hitching as he rubs his hook on her stomach.

“I’m here to take you somewhere, love. Are you up for a trip?”

She turns around quickly. “A trip? Where? Henry is at school, you know we can’t go anywhere! Why would you—”

He pinches her lips together to keep her from talking.

“Perhaps trip was the wrong word. We’re going out, and don’t worry about the lad, he’s down in the car.”

She steps back. “What’s he doing down in the car? He should be in _school_ , Killian!”

“I allowed him a day so that he may follow his grandfather and I to work,” her eyes go wide but before she can argue, he cuts her off. “Don’t fret, love. It’s just a day, he’s promised to catch up on all of his schooling that he misses, plus, if he knew that I was taking you without him I wouldn’t hear the end of it.”

Without realizing it, Killian has ushered her toward the front door of the loft and he’s closing it behind them before she can protest.

“Where are we going?”

He gives her smirk that tells her she’s not in on a secret and she just presses her lips at him. Opening her mouth, he holds up a Hershey bar that comes out _where_ exactly she doesn’t know, and squints her eyes at him. He knows they have been her biggest craving the last couple days but suddenly it makes her feel like he’s giving a treat to an animal that won’t listen.

With tears forming in her eyes, she swats the candy bar away. “Do you think you can buy me off like I’m your _pet_?”

His face shows shock and he takes a step back.

“Don’t think you can just _feed_ me and—” a sob escapes her throat as tears start to run down her face. “You have to talk to me, you have to tell me what you’re doing! If you’re keeping our son out of school I deserve to know about it!”

He steps forward, his hand and hook held in front of him and his brows almost touching his hair line, but she slaps them away.

“No! I’m tired of everyone treating me like I’m glass and I’m going to break. I’m a person, I’m the fucking _Savior._ Stop treating me like I’m some brain dead princess!”

“Hey, hey,” he whispers, taking her into his arms. His lips press against her temple and her hands grip the back of his waist coat while she sobs into his shoulder. “Nobody thinks that of you. I wasn’t trying to keep you in the dark, Emma. The lad and I have a bit of a surprise is all, of course you deserve to know.”

“I can’t sit in anymore,” she cries. “It’s driving me insane. There is nothing for me to do in this loft! I’ve cleaned our room four times in the last two days and rearranged the kitchen twice. I think my dad feels like he’s going crazy.”

With a chuckle, he pulls back, “Ah. That explains why my rum keeps moving.”

“I need to do something! Even if it’s just looking for apartments, I have to move—” he wipes the tears from her cheeks. “—I have to get out. We can’t even pack because we don’t have a place a-and I just want…”

Kissing her lips, he cuts her off before wrapping his arms around his waist. “I think I might be able to help with that aspect.”

Her brows pinch together as she sucks in a breath, trying to calm herself down.

“Now, will you allow me and our son to surprise you or shall I tell you? But if I do, you have to act surprised… Henry is rather excited about this.”

Killian helps her wipe her face clean, but the pout stays on her lips. “No, I don’t want that, I would hate to disappoint him.”

He gives her a small smile before he kisses her lips again. They stay in the hall until she’s calmed down and when they finally head down the steps, she picks up the thrown Hershey bar and ignores the smile he tries to hide.

Henry talks her ear off as soon as she gets into the car, telling her how _cool_ it is that he got to skip school to spend the day with David and Killian at the station.

“Mom! Killian taught me how to get out of handcuffs!”

Her eyes shoot over to Killian as he drives her bug to see him wince.

“Lad,” he groans. “What did I tell you?”

She looks back at Henry who is sitting up in between the seats, his face wearing a sheepish smile.

“That we should tell mom later when you’re not stuck in a car with her.”

“Yes, like when we are alone and I can tell him how I _really_ feel about it.”

Killian rolls his eyes while their son giggles from the backseat. As they drive, she thinks of ways she could possibly torture him for teaching Henry something that, well, okay she’s known since she was a teenager, but still. She had to learn those things in order to survive and his childhood is in no way like hers. He has people there to protect him and love him.

Her haunting thoughts are broken when Killian reaches over and puts his hand on hers. He brings her hand to his lips and kisses her fingers, before placing it on his thigh so he could shift. They are in the car for ten minutes before Killian pulls up to a relative quiet street.

“What are we doing here?” she asks as she looks out the window.

The house is beautiful and _huge_ and completely out of their price range.

“Isn’t it pretty?” Henry asks as he steps out of the car.

“It’s…” she trails off. “Yes, it’s gorgeous, but it doesn’t explain why we are here.”

Killian walks over to her with a small smile and takes her by the hand. “Perhaps we should have a look? Just for fun.”

Henry runs up to the house and she pulls Killian’s hand so he’ll slow down while she speaks softly, “You know we can’t afford this right? I mean, I know real estate in Storybrooke isn’t like New York, but there’s no way we can afford this.”

“Swan,” he whispers as he continues to walk. “Will you just indulge me and the lad and take a look?”

With a sigh, she gives a quick nod and continues to head toward the house. Ever the gentleman, he places his hand on the small of her back and helps her climb the stairs while Henry stands in front of the door practically vibrating with excitement.

She looks around but there isn’t anyone else besides them, “How are we—”

Killian steps forward and turns the knob, the door opening without any resistance.

“Would you look at that,” he says, his eyes wide with amusement. “It appears to be unlocked.”

A funny feeling washes over her as Henry drags her into the house, something tells her that they aren’t there _just_ to have a look around.

The inside is more beautiful than the outside. The living room is large and the kitchen, lord, the kitchen looks like three people could walk around and _not_ bump into each other every five seconds. Henry is going on about how awesome the house is and how much room they would have before he drags her to the back.

She was right with her first assumption about the porch, it wraps around the entire house and when they open the door for her, she sees a large yard that leads down to tiny shore line. A smile tugs are her lips because the first thing that she thinks of when she sees it is that the Jolly would look beautiful docked there.

But the Jolly is gone.

“What causes that frown, love?”

His voice breaks her out of her haunting thoughts and he leans down to lightly kiss her forehead, Henry must have run back inside because he’s no longer on the porch with them.

Swallowing, she holds back her tears and murmurs, “I just… I just think the Jolly would have looked beautiful docked there.”

He hums and presses his lips against her temple for a second time as he rubs his hook over her stomach, “Aye. She would have. But I think another lady in my life will look even more beautiful _inside_.”

She blinks up at him, a lone tear running down her face that he catches with his finger before he’s taking her back into the house.

“Now,” he starts as he guides her up the stairs. “Hear me out, but I rather fancy this room the best.”

When he opens a door, her jaw drops and her eyes go wide. The bedroom is about the size of the living room in her parent’s loft. Henry is standing in the middle with his arms out and a big smile on his face.

“What do you think? You guys would have your own bathroom and oh, mom! You _have_ to look at this!”

Their son grabs her hand and pulls her out the doors on the side which lead to a balcony that overlooks the backyard. A breeze catches her and she has to hold her hair as the smell of the ocean fills her nostrils. Memories of when she was younger flash through her mind, times when houses like this only came into her life when she broke into them for a place to sleep at night.

Her life has changed much since then, the soft kick to her stomach and Henry’s hand in her own reminding her that she’s no longer alone.

“What do you think, love?”

His voice is soft and when she turns around, she sees him leaning against the doorframe with his thumb looped through his belt.

“It’s beautiful, but Killian,” she looks back out at the ocean before turning completely to him. “We talked about this.”

Henry walks over to his stepfather, who puts his arm around the boy and pulls him close. They both smile at her and she knows in that moment what’s going on.

“You already bought this didn’t you?” Killian’s lips press together to hide his smile while Henry giggles. “How… when… Killian!”

He takes a step forward and pulls her into his arms, his lips going to her ear while Henry wraps his arms around them, “Did I not tell you, Swan? When your father went to the Jolly before he came from us he was able to rid her of all of my wealth.”

She pulls her head back and her mouth pops open making him chuckle.

“It’s as you said,” he begins again, louder this time so that Henry can hear. “The market is quite different than New York.”

Tears cloud her vision before she pulls him back to her, pressing her lips firmly to his while she hugs their son to their sides and their daughter moves in her stomach.

And in that moment, the house turns into their home.

* * *

Emma walks through the woods, her feet crunching over the new fallen snow. Her brows go together because even though it’s white as far as the eye can see, she’s not cold. In fact, she’s in nothing but a pair of jeans and a tank top.

Her hands go to her round stomach as she continues to walk through the woods. She calls out for Killian and Henry, but her voice echoes in the air. She doesn’t remember how she got there, all she knows is that something doesn’t feel right.

Closing her eyes, she pictures their house seconds before gray smoke appears around her. But it’s not where she ends up. When she opens her eyes she sees Zelena’s farm house in front of her. Pressing her lips together, she closes her eyes and pictures their house again, but before her magic begins, a voice speaks from behind her.

“It seems I came back right on time.”

Emma turns and her eyes go wide when she sees Zelena standing before her with a sickening grin on her face.

“Thanks for keeping her safe for me.”

A high pitch scream rings out and she looks down to see a newborn baby girl in her arms. Tears cloud her vision before she snaps her head back up to the Wicked Witch as she pulls her daughter closer to her chest. The next thing she knows, her daughter has disappeared from her arms and appears in Zelena’s.

“No!” Emma cries out.

Zelena smirks. “So pure… so innocent,” she looks down at the baby. “And now, you’re mine.”

Emma rushes forward but Zelena disappears in a cloud of green smoke. Her entire body freezes as the fear washes over her.

Her baby is gone.

Her _daughter_ is gone.

She’s lost another baby.

Crumbling down onto her knees her mouth opens and she’s scream louder than she’s ever screamed in her entire life.

“Emma! Bloody hell, Emma wake up, love! You’re having a nightmare!”

Her eyes snap open and they dart around. She’s back in their bedroom and it’s dark, Killian is kneeling above her, his hand and stump on her shoulders and his face masked in worry.

She sucks in a large gasp of air, her chest feeling heavy, lungs burning as if they haven’t worked in ages. Killian is speaking but she can barely hear him over the sounds of her own sobs.

He tries to pull her into his arms, but she pushes him and puts her hands on her stomach.

“You’re still here,” she cries to her stomach. “Move for me, baby, please. Let mommy know you’re here.”

“Emma, what’s wrong?”

Her eyes squeeze shut as she continues to will her daughter to move inside of her. After a few moments, the baby moves, just slightly, but she feels her and Emma sobs in relief.

“Please,” Killian groans out almost in pain. “Darling, what is it?”

Sagging into his arms, she continues to cry until she feels like she can’t cry anymore. The entire time he holds her, rocking her back and forth, whispering in her ear how everything is alright and that she is safe.

“She’s going to come back,” she chokes out.

“What? Who?”

Frantically, she sits up and starts again, “Zelena. She’s going to come back and try to take our daughter.”

“Love—”

“Killian how are we going to protect her? She’ll come back and she’s going to take her!” He shakes his head and tries to pull her back to him but she pushes his arms away. “She’s never going to stop. She’ll find a way back, I just know it. We have to be ready, we have to protect ourselves!”

She pushes herself up off the bed and starts to pull on her sweat pants.

“What are you doing?”

“We have to go to Regina’s,” she rambles. “We have to make sure there is way she stays gone.”

Trying to bend over to grab her shoes, she’s stopped when Killian jumps out of their bed and takes a hold of her arms. “Love, come back to bed everything will be—”

“Everything will not be alright!” she cries, tears streaming down her face. “She’s going to come back and she’s going to try to take her from me, I can’t—” she chokes. “—I can’t have my baby taken from me, not again. They can’t take her.”

Fear is running through her and she can feel her body starting to shake. Her magic is making her skin tingle the windows in their bedroom begin to rattle. She flinches when a hand touches her face and the sound of the shaking glass becomes louder.

It’s not until her eyes move up that she realizes Killian is standing over her, his lips are moving but she isn’t hearing anything that he’s saying.

“Look at my eyes, good girl, keep your eyes on me,” his voice starts to become clear but panic still pulses through her. “Take a deep breath, Emma. Good, that’s good, another. Calm down, my love.”

His thumb rubs against her jaw and she sucks in a breath, her magic begins to lesson and the sound of the windows rattling lesson. As her fear begins to calm, it’s then she notices his hand is tight against her face and the strokes with his thumb are jagged. With her brow pinched together, she feels her magic drain and his entire body relaxes.

“What’s wrong?”

Pressing his lips together, he steps to her, with a shake of his head, “Nothing, love. You just had me a bit frighten is all.” He’s lying, but when she opens her mouth, he kisses her forehead. “She’s not going to take our child, Emma. Zelena is gone.”

“She can come back.”

“If she does, we’ll be ready. You know the spell Glinda gave your parents. The bean will be protected the second she is out.” He rubs his stump on her stomach and speaks with such confidence, it makes every fear she’s ever had completely leave her. “ _No_ one will get near our daughter, I’ll make sure of it.”

 


	33. Chapter Thirty-Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double line breaks mean change in POV :D

** Chapter Thirty-Three **

**34 th Week**

“I don’t mean to pry,” Robin starts as he carries a box filled with their clothes into the house. “But might it have been easier to just have Regina move all of this with a flick of the wrist?”

Killian chuckles as he places his own box down on the floor in the living room.

“Aye,” he answers. “Emma insisted we do this the ‘old fashion’ way.”

Robin arches his eyebrow, “And what does that mean?”

“I have no clue,” he says with a shrug.

The two men share a laugh before two of his crewmen walk in carrying a dresser.

“Where shall we put this, Captain?”

“My quarters,” he orders. “Third door on the right—” they nod and begin to walk up the stairs. “—I dare not say what happens if there is so much as a smudge on it!”

“Aye, aye, Captain!”

When he turns, he sees Robin tilt his head and shrugs, “Just a precaution.”

The Thief shakes his head with a smile before they both walk outside to grab the next round of boxes.

“Okay, but _please_ be careful with that,” Emma begs Smee as he lifts a vase out of the back of her bug. “Henry made that for me and the Captain at school and it’s very special to us.”

Smee nods at her, “Aye, Princess. I shall handle it with the utmost care.”

She smiles at him before she looks over to see more crewmen unloading their bed and rushes over to start giving them instructions.

“I dare say your precautions were unnecessary,” Robin says with a nod toward his very pregnant fiancé as she gives his crew their orders. “It seems the Lady Swan has it all under control.”

A smile tugs at his lips at how adorable she looks. While everyone is wearing heavy coats to protect themselves from the chill in the air, she is wearing a light, spring jacket over a pair of jean overalls that make her stomach pop out in the most beautiful way.

She’s always been beautiful, he’s barely been able to keep his eyes off of her for the last two years, but seeing her swollen with their child… she’s a bloody angel.

“Aye, it appears she does.”

It takes the crew two hours to unload all of their belongings before they are finally done. Killian gives Smee a pouch full of coins and tells him to take the crew out for some libations on him. He doesn’t realize how long he spends talking to his first mate until Henry walks out and calls his name.

He waves Smee away and walks up the porch steps.

“What’s wrong, lad?”

Henry gives him a sheepish grin as he squirms back and forth on his feet.

“Um…”

“Is there something wrong with your room?”

The lad’s eyes light up and large smile forms on his face.

“No! I love it! Will you still help me build the shelves for my books?”

Patting Henry on his shoulder, he nods as they walk into the house. “Of course. We’ll start next week when—”

He stops when he hears a thump from upstairs. It’s light, almost as if something was dropped but his instincts are on high alert.

Henry sighs, “That’s what I wanted to tell you. Mom is upstairs unpacking your room and well—” there’s another thump. “—she didn’t like where they put the dresser.”

His eyes close for a brief second before he rushes up the stairs. Her _nesting_ phase started before they left the loft and just the night prior, he had to pick her up on his way home from the station after she spent the entire day cleaning the new house because it was _completely and utterly filthy_ according to her.

When he reaches their opened bedroom door, he finds Emma on her knees pulling their new dresser out from the wall and his heart just about stops.

“Emma!”

She actually jumps and when she turns, there is a sheepish look on her face.

“Hey, baby,” she breathes out, brushing a loose piece of hair out of her face before motioning to the dresser. “I decided the dresser would look better on the south wall.” He rushes over to help her stand and she gives him a small smile. “Thank you.”

His jaw clenches as he tries to find the right words. She knows that she shouldn’t be moving heavy objects, the little bean is due in a couple weeks and any stress can cause harm, but his Swan is a stubborn lass. She fears that using her magic will harm the bean, it’s been more unpredictable the last few weeks, she tried to light a candle the other night and ended up setting the dresser on fire, which is why they bought a new one.

“Love, I know you don’t like to ask for help, but please _please_ will you allow me to do things like this for you? With the bean being so close…”

She looks over her shoulder and squints her eyes at their son as she murmurs, “Traitor.”

“Mom, that thing is way too heavy!”

Henry walks into the room and Emma gives a pout. Killian kisses her before he moves over to the dresser.

“Come on, lad, let’s move this to where your mum wants it.”

Her lips form into a large smile before she points to where she wants the dresser to go. They are just about to lift it when she announces she’s running to the restroom.

Once the door closes, Henry looks up at him, “You know she’s not going to like it there and makes us move it again.”

Killian rolls his eyes and whispers, “Aye, I know.”

She comes out of the bathroom just as they put the dresser in place, but when she sees it, her face drops and she presses her lips together with a tilt of her head.

They move it three more times before she finally decides that it’s better in its original spot.

* * *

* * *

**38 th Week**

“Everything alright, darling?”

Emma looks over to see Killian smiling at her as he stuffs a trash bag with pink wrapping paper and she’s hit with a feeling.

It’s not often, but sometimes, she’s hit with overwhelming feeling to run. It’s not because she isn’t happy, and it’s not because she doesn’t love her life…

It’s because sometimes the feeling of having so many people doing things for her, putting her first, still shocks her.

For twenty-eight years she spent her life alone, no family, no one to care about things like her birthday, or the fact that she was having a child. The counselor in the prison was the only one that seemed semi interested, and it was probably just because it was her job, not because she cared about _her_.

But here she is, in her early thirties, at a baby shower for _her_ , the son she gave up all those years ago running around with his Uncle, her parents laughing and taking pictures as she opens up the gifts the women of the town bought for her, and her fiancé next to her, granting her every wish.

Whenever she wants a refill of her drink, Killian is grabbing her cup before she can even ask and when she finishes her piece of cake, he’s gives her a second because he knows her sweet tooth has been on overdrive lately.

To say she was surprised when they walked through the doors of town hall would be an understatement. But then again, she’s been so occupied with getting the new house together and preparing for the baby, she’s barely paid any attention to her super power… Killian was able to hide the fact that he bought them a house for pete’s sake.

But she does feel guilty for the little melt down she had before they left.

_“Love, we have to be there in ten minutes, please tell me you are ready!”_

_With a huff, she stops struggling with the zipper on the back of her dress and storms out of their bathroom to see him standing there with an anxious look on his face._

_“I’m sorry it takes longer for me to get ready then it does you!”_

_“Swan,” he sighs. “Charming told us yesterday the time we are required to be at the town meeting, perhaps it would have been a little wise to start getting ready a bit sooner?”_

_Her face turns hard. “You try getting anything accomplished with this big gut in the way!”_

_He closes his eyes and clenches his jaw, a sign that she’s come to learn means he’s trying to reign in his frustration and it instantly makes her feel guilty. He’s right, she knew what time they had to be at town hall, but she got distracted with cleaning the baby’s room that she lost track of time._

_Sucking in a breath, she attempts to zipper her dress again when he continues._

_“I understand that it’s… difficult, but when I called you said that you were already moving along and—”_

_She loses her battle with her dress and her arms sag as she lets out a stuttering breath and starts to cry. Turning around, she walks back into the bathroom with her shoulders shaking from the force of her sobs._

_“Love,” Killian sighs, jogging to catch up to her. He attempts to hold her but she pushes his arms away and sits down on the closed toilet lid._

_“You don’t understand!” she cries out. “I can’t wear_ anything _but this big… tent!”_

_He kneels before her and places his hook and hand on the side of her thighs, “What are you talking about? You look bloody gorgeous!”_

_“You don’t know what it’s like to be this fat! I can’t even zipper my own dress!” she sobs, the tears pouring down her face._

_“Oh, sweetheart,” he murmurs as he reaches up to wipe her face. “I’m sorry, I should be more sensitive, I didn’t realize—” he moves and zippers her dress. “—there, is that better?”_

_She sniffles and nods, her sobs have gone silent, but stuttering breaths still make her shoulders jerk._

_“I’m sorry.”_

_Leaning forward, he kisses her softly, “No, love, it was all my doing. Forgive me, I love you.”_

_With a pout, she pulls him in for a hug. “I love you, too.”_

They were twenty minutes late, but no one seemed to mind.

It’s good that they didn’t wait to move into their house because with the number of gifts they received, her parent’s loft would have no walking room if they had to take them back there.

And just about _everything_ is princess related.

Dresses, bows, shoes… all princess, with a few exceptions.

Robin fashioned a tiny rattle that the baby can wear on her wrist in the shape of a hook. Emma laughed hard at that while Killian just rolled his eyes. Ruby bought the baby two leather jackets, one red and one black, _“This way she can choose if she wants to look like Mommy or Daddy.”,_ while Granny told them as soon as they have a name picked, she’ll knit the baby a blanket just like Emma’s.

She only cried a little over that.

Ashley bought a onesie that said ‘Daddy and I agree, Mommy is the boss’, to which Killian replied, _“Sadly, it’s true.”_

Marco even built them a crib, and not just a regular crib that someone could buy in a store, no, this was hand crafted and _gorgeous._ It’s a carriage, with wheels on the bottom under the bed. The poles, that form into a circle above the crib, have hand crafted vines and flowers running up them until they meet in the middle, where there is a little platform. On top of it, there is a small sculpture of the Jolly Roger. Tears sparkled in her eyes when she saw that, while Killian inspected it to make sure it was up to par.

It was, of course, and he praised Marco and little August, erg, Pinocchio, for getting the coloring right.

The rest of the gifts were pretty basic, diapers, pacifiers, bags, bibs… things she didn’t even _think_ of, because honestly, she didn’t even know that something called a _diaper genie_ existed.

But the best gift was from her parents. They took the mobile that was supposed to hang over her bed from Gold’s shop and switched out the glass unicorns for glass swan’s and anchors. It’s beautiful and fills her with a sense of… determination.

Determination that _this_ time was not going to be like every other time. Zelena will not get Emma like Regina got her parents, Emma will not give up her daughter like she did with Henry… she will be the best mother she can be, and from the moment her baby is born, she will always know what it’s like to have a happy family and never know what it feels like to be alone.

With a smile, she leans into him and places a soft kiss over the scar on his cheek.

“Everything is perfect.”

* * *

* * *

There are many things that David Nolan planned to do with his life when he and Snow first found out she was pregnant.

Every father dreams of having a son, _it’s in their DNA_ as his lovely wife puts it, but then she told him what the amulet his mother gave her predicted and he realized that it didn’t matter.

All the things he intended to teach his son, he could teach his daughter. How to mind sheep, how to handle a sword, how to run a kingdom… all while she wore a pretty dress.

But he never got to do those things with his daughter. By the time they met, she was a twenty-eight-year-old woman with a son of her own and balls were something of the past.

She didn’t get a proper introduction to the kingdom, she didn’t get her crowning ceremony…

But Snow taught him to always look at what they have, and not what they lost.

And what he has is a loving wife, a beautiful daughter who is about to give birth, a grandson who makes him proud every single day, and a future son-in-law that would gladly give up his life to save theirs.

He learned back in Neverland that Killian was someone they could trust, someone that they could rely on, even if he was only doing it to get in the good graces of his daughter. But somewhere along the line that changed, he stuck around, helped them fight even when the prospect of being with her was all but gone.

Then he left with her and David knew deep down, that they were going to be okay, happy even… he did _not_ know, that when he would see them again, that they would be a family.

Sure, he had a feeling that they would be more than what they were, but engaged—

Sometimes it still floors him, his daughter and Captain Hook are getting married and have a child on the way.

Of course after David gave him the memory potion he had some doubt. Sure Killian _said_ Henry was his son, but once he got his memories back, how would that change? Once again, the Pirate proved him wrong, he’s put Henry’s needs first with everything and has proved just what kind of father he will be.

One that will love his family unconditionally.

David spends most of his time at the shower with Killian and Robin, their respective partners demanded it. They are to watch the children— which is a workless job since Henry took both young boys out to play –and to be there for anything someone might need.

Which, for David and Robin, is busting on Killian when Emma slaps a pink bow on his chest while they open presents. He even takes his phone out for a picture that he plans to send later just to get his gears going, but Killian takes it all with stride, reminding him of something he told him a while ago.

_“If it makes your daughter laugh, mate, I’ll do it without question.”_

He might have also taken just a few random pictures of them smiling over the gifts they receive and a great picture of them with Henry.

Someone got the baby a onesie that said ‘second mate’ and Henry a shirt that says ‘first mate’. Each had skulls and swords on it, Emma giggled while Killian mumbled about stereotypes.

Although, he doesn’t seem to grumble too much at all the princess outfits they open. If anything, his smile only gets bigger each time something new is unwrapped. David can tell right then, that even though he’s a pirate, he’s going to love seeing his little girl dressed up in pretty princess dresses…

Because if David had a say, he would have loved to see Emma dressed in gowns, as well, they are a lot alike in that way.

When Emma finishes opening all of her gifts she turns to Killian with a smile on her face.

“Actually, I have a gift that I wanted to give to you,” she says with a smile, her eyes sparkling with amusement.

Killian adjusts himself in his seat and pinches his brow together. “What’s that, love?”

David watches as his wife hands a bag to Emma, who in turn gives it to Killian. “Our daughter’s _first_ doll.”

He presses his lips together and rips the tissue paper off of the top of the bag. Before the object is even out, he can see the smile on Killian’s face. It starts small, slowly becoming bigger, before he shakes his head and leans over to give her a kiss.

The couple pull apart, and Killian reaches up to wipe a stray tear from her cheek as they whisper to each other.

“What’s in the bag?” David asks as he walks up.

Emma giggles while Killian rolls his eyes and pulls out a plush Captain Hook doll. David nearly spits out his beer in laughter when Robin cries out, “What the bloody hell is that?”

“That…” Regina says with a smirk as they walk up, “is this world’s representation of Captain Hook, and pretty accurate if I do say so myself.”

Killian stares at her blankly while Emma rolls her eyes and takes the doll away from him.

“Um, this is actually the doll Killian won for me on our second date in New York. He used to sit on a shelf in our room back in our apartment.”

The Pirate actually blushes a little before he puts his arm around Emma’s shoulder and presses his lips to her forehead.

“Wait a moment,” Robin holds up his hand. “You’re telling me with no memory of who you actually were, you won Emma a… doll version of yourself?”

Killian rolls his eyes, but there’s a hint of a smile on his lips. “That doll is in no way a version of me, this realm has gotten it quite wrong.”

“Well, now I’m curious as to what it sees me as,” Robin says with a smile.

Snow wraps her arm around David’s waist and giggles, “How do you feel about foxes?”

His eyebrow quirks and he’s just about to open his mouth when they hear shouting.

“Papa!”

The group turns to see Roland and Leo holding hands as they run up with tears streaming down their faces.

“Roland!”

David’s heart stops as he and his wife rush to their crying son while Robin and Regina do the same to Roland.

“Son, what’s wrong?”

Emma and Killian appear behind them as the young boy tries to get out what happened. He and his wife search Leo over for any sign of injury, but they find none.

“Where’s Henry?” Killian asks and David goes stiff.

Handing his son over to Snow, he rushes to catch up with Emma, Killian and Regina who ran outside.

“No,” Regina breathes out. “We sent you back to Oz!”

Zelena stands across the street, a sick smile on her face, with Rumple next to her and Henry in her arms.

“You should know it’s not that easy to get rid of my little sis,” she calls out, tightening her grip on a struggling Henry.

“Let go of my son, _Witch_!” Killian growls and steps forward.

Zelena holds the dagger up to Henry’s throat and they all stop, “Come any closer and my dear nephew will find his end.”

David grabs for his sword, but Emma steps forward, her hands in front of her and her eyes closed.

“Emma, no!” Snow hollers right before she pushes her arms out and a blast of white magic expels from her hands.

Zelena’s face scrunches together in pain as smoke starts to rise from her hands. Her grip loosens and Henry uses that opportunity to break free. Killian and Regina meet him halfway, pushing him behind them to protect him.

“Get him inside!” Regina hisses before she lifts her hand and steps forward.

They all rush back inside just as Regina shoots a fireball toward the Wicked Witch. He and Killian close the door and attempt to block it when he hears his wife cry out.

“David!”

His head snaps over to Emma to see her standing there, hunched over, her hands on her stomach, and breathing heavy while Snow puts her arm around her and whispers in her ear.

“Grandpa,” Henry starts when he walks up. “What is that?”

He points to the ground and David’s eyes go wide.

Emma’s water broke.

Moving his eyes back to the door, he yells out, “Hook!”

When he runs up, he freezes and Emma’s breathing starts to pick up as they all stare at the puddle at her feet. Killian is the first to move, stepping forward to take her into his arms and attempting to hold her as she cries out.

“Mom!” Henry calls out, his voice filled with concern.

Her arm shoots out to wrap around him while Killian tries to pull her toward the door.

“Swan,” he starts, his voice filled with fear and joy. “We have to get you to the hospital!”

Emma starts to shake her head as her eyes squeeze shut. “She’s not due for another two weeks!”

“It matters not, she’s coming now.”

Handing his son over to Snow, he says, “Have Granny take Leo, I’ll get the truck. Meet us at the hospital.” She looks up at him, the fear clear in her eyes, so he leans forward and gives his wife a light kiss. “Everything will be okay,” he whispers.

Snow gives him a tight nod before he rushes outside and almost crashes into Robin.

“Zelena is gone! Regina has gone after her and I—”

David puts his hand on his arm, “Go with her, she’s going to need all the help she can get. Snow will make sure Roland is alright. I have to get Emma to the hospital, her water broke.”

Robin’s eyes go wide. “I’ll send word to my men and to Hook’s crew, they’ll be there to put up a defense just in case.”

Patting the man on the shoulder, he looks back when the doors open to see Killian rushing out with his arms around Emma.

“Charming!”

He’s in his truck and pulling up to them before they are even down the steps

“Ah!” Emma cries, holding onto her stomach while helps her in. “Dad, we—”

“I know, sweetie. Come on, everything will be okay.”

It takes them less than fifteen minutes to get to the hospital, with Killian coaching Emma to breathe. The three of them rush inside to see the merry men already guarding the entrance. Whale and a nurse run up, pushing Emma down into a wheelchair before they push her down the hall.

“Go,” David says to Killian with a pat on the shoulder. “Snow and I will be right in.”

His wife comes rushing into the hospital moments later.

“Emma… where is she, is she…?”

He puts his hands on her arms and gives her a reassuring smile. “She’s fine, her and Hook are in the delivery room now.”

Snow sucks in a breath with tears in her eyes. A small smile forms on her face before she reaches up to cup his face.

“David, we’re about to watch the birth of our grandchild!”

Her voice is filled with such awe he can’t help but lean forward and kiss her. Their life hasn’t turned out the way they planned it when they got married, but it’s still their life and he wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

They rush down the hall, passing Mac, Smee and the crew of the Jolly who are guarding the door to Emma’s room. Pushing themselves inside, they find Whale at the end of the bed, Emma laying with her legs spread, crying out as another contraction hits her while Killian stands by her side, coaching her to breathe and telling her that everything will be okay.

“She’s here!” Emma cries. “She’s going to try and take her from me! Killian, I can’t protect her like this, I have to protect her!”

Brushing his hand over her face, he tells her, “ _No one_ is taking our child, Emma. I am here, your parents are here… we _all_ are going to protect her, you’re not alone. Just concentrate on giving birth.”

Emma stares at him for a couple seconds, her chin quivering up and down before she nods as he leans forward to kiss her forehead.

“Okay, Emma, I want you to push for me,” Whale tells her and Snow takes a step forward.

David shoots his arm out and stops her. He knows she wants to be by her daughter’s side, to hold her hand, but he can’t allow her, he doesn’t want her to get hurt. Killian told him that whenever Emma has gotten upset recently, her magic has formed a type of barrier over her skin, projecting itself out in tiny shocks whenever anyone touches her.

The two men decided not to tell her, she was already worried about how her magic would affect her child and they didn’t want to put unneeded stress upon her. Regina told them it that it was fine, her magic was pushing outward, not in, so the baby was in no danger, but they knew she would still worry.

Killian told him it was light shocks, nothing too terrible, but with the amount of pain she’s going through during labor, there’s no telling what kind of power she’ll produce.

Emma starts to push and he can see Killian flinching, only stopping when pushing becomes too much and she slumps back onto the bed.

“Emma,” Whale calls out. “She’s crowning… we have to keep going.”

The lights start to flicker in the room, while the sound of clattering medical equipment echoes off the walls. Snow grabs a hold of his arm as they watch their daughter sit up on her elbows to begin pushing again, Killian by her side, his left arm around her shoulders and his right hand wrapped around hers.

“You can do this, love. Come on, push for me,” he encourages her.

Emma closes her eyes and the tension fills her face as begins to push again. Killian continues to urge her along while a harsh wind whips around the room. David pulls his wife closer when he sees the Pirate’s face contort in pain before he almost slips and falls.

“Wha—” She stops pushing and looks over at him. “What’s wrong?”

Killian swallows and shakes his head, “Nothing, love.”

“Emma!” Whale calls out.

She shakes her head. “My magic… it’s hurting you—” she attempts to push him away. “—go, you can’t touch me, I can’t control it now.”

Gripping her hand tighter, he locks his feet in place, “I’m not going anywhere.”

Whale huffs and calls out again, “Emma!”

She looks at Killian with tears streaming down her face and shakes her head, silently begging him to move so that she won’t hurt him.

“I’m _not_ leaving you,” he whispers, his voice firm and final.

“I need you to push _now_!” Whale hollers.

She squeezes her eyes shut as Killian helps her sit up more, wrapping his left arm around her tighter while he brings their hands up to his lips.

Emma’s body tenses as she begins to push. The medical equipment shakes harder, the horrible sound of metal upon metal filling the room, just barely being heard over the sounds of her cries. The lights above them explode as white sparks of electricity expel from her skin.

Killian’s body goes stiff but after a few seconds, he can’t hold back his cries of pain. His left arm pulls her close and his fingers tighten around hers. David watches as his body spasms while she shocks him, making his eyes roll back into his head, but his hold never breaks.

David pulls his wife close again, memories of her birth with Emma flashing through his mind. His left hand stays on the hilt of his sword, ready for any attack that may come.

It’s such a wonderful feeling, to watch his daughter give birth to his granddaughter is a magical experience, but he can’t help but keep his eye on the door, wishing with all his might that the spell they put around the hospital will hold long enough for—

The medical equipment stops shaking and there is a tiny cry that rings out. His eyes snap over to see Emma collapse back onto the bed, while Whale pulls the crying baby out from her in between her legs.

* * *

* * *

Emma falls back onto the bed and lets out a whimper. She’s exhausted and alert at the same time. She can hear her daughter's cries and it’s the only thing that’s keeping her from passing out. Her body is still shaking and she can still feel her magic on the tips of her fingers.

Her eyes snap open and she looks over at Killian. She vaguely remembers his cries mixed her own as she unwillingly shocked him and how his body convulsed in pain. He’s watching as Whale takes their daughter to clean her and is just about to walk over, when she reaches up to cup his jaw.

“Are you okay?”

He whips back to look at her and she sees his face filled with nothing but love. His hook moves a piece of hair stuck to her sweaty forehead while he leans down to her.

“You did so well, my love!” he presses his lips to hers and she can’t help but giggle through her tears. “You are a marvel, I love you so much, so bloody much!”

Before she can respond, he kisses her again giggling himself as he pulls her closer. It’s not until they hear Whale’s voice that they finally break apart.

“Here she is.”

She gasps because a quick flash of the last time this happened hits her.

_“It’s a boy, Emma…. Emma? Oh. Emma, just so you know, you can change your mind.”_

_“No, I can’t be a mother.”_

Her body lurches forward as her arms reach out in front of her.

_Not this time._

“Give her to me.”

Whale puts the pink bundle in her arms and her heart bursts as the baby’s tiny arms stretch out in front of her. Tears cloud her vision and she reaches up to run a finger over her face. The little girl looks so much like her older brother, it makes her sad and happy at the same time. Smiling, she looks up to see Killian staring at the both of them with tears of his own.  

“Would you like to meet your daughter?”

He lets out what sounds like a choked sob before he steps closer, his fingers moving to wrap around her tiny hand just as the baby opens her mouth and gives a yawn before her eyes open.

“She’s so beautiful,” he whispers.

Emma watches as he leans down and softly places his lips on their daughter’s forehead when a loud crash from outside of the room is heard.

Both of their heads snap up and her arms tighten, “She’s here.”

“Pay attention to the baby,” her father says, yanking his sword from its holder. “We got this.”

Her parents rush out of the room while Killian runs over to lock the door before coming back to stand by her.

“The spell, love, do it.”

She lifts her hand to perform the spell Glinda gave to her parents, when the door blows open.

“Look at the beautiful Jones family.” Zelena says with a smirk.

Killian pushes forward with a growl, his hook high in the air ready to strike but Zelena waves her hand and he stills. Emma’s eyes go wide and she’s frozen with fear. She wants to lift her hand, blast the Witch away like she did earlier, but she can’t.

All she can do is tighten her arms around her daughter, but her arms come together and when she looks down, she sees nothing but air.

“Hmmm,” Zelena hums. “So _pure_ , so _innocent_ …” she looks up at Emma with a smirk. “And mine!”

Emma uses all of her strength to throw her legs over the bed, attempting to run after her, but her legs cripple under her and she falls to the ground. Zelena giggles and just as Emma shoots a white blast at her, she disappears in a cloud of green smoke.

The entire world stops.

She’s gone.

Her daughter is gone.

Her eyes widen as she stares at the spot the Wicked Witch just vanished from.

For the second time in her life, her baby was taken from her.

The entire hospital starts to shake and the glass in the windows burst as she opens her mouth and lets out a painful wail.

 


	34. Chapter Thirty-Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is. The final regular chapter of Unbreakable. I can’t believe we are here. It’s so bittersweet. I’m posting a day earlier because with the upcoming holiday, I won’t be able to be on here as much. I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, or anything else that you may celebrate and always remember to love each other<3

** Chapter Thirty-Four **

The first thing Killian notices is the ground moving below his feet. The second, is the sound of glass breaking and his body falling forward from the force. His arms cover his head, but not before a piece of glass cuts down his left cheek. The sting of the cut takes him out of his shock and he remembers where he is.

The hospital, Emma just gave birth to their daughter when—

His eyes snap over to the bed, but she isn’t there. Fear and panic was over him until he catches sight of her, kneeling on the ground, tears streaming down her face as she stares off.

“Emma,” he breathes out, falling to the ground next to her. “Speak to me… are you hurt?”

“She’s gone,” she finally says, just barely above a whisper. “I’ve failed.”

“No,” he growls, putting his arms around her. “You didn’t _fail_ anything.”

He did… he was supposed to protect them.

It’s like a fog washes over him. He doesn’t remember lifting Emma and putting her back into the bed, or her mother rushing to her side. He just remembers pressing his lips to her forehead and vowing to bring their daughter back.

He’s never been this angry before, not when Liam died, not when Milah was taken from him… he knows the only thing that’s going to make all of this right is by ending Zelena, and he will.

Storming out of the room, he ignores everyone and heads straight for his son who is standing with Archie.

“Killian, what’s—”

“Zelena,” he growls out, barely recognizing his own voice. “She took your sister.”

Henry’s eyes widen with fear and he opens his mouth to say something when Regina walks up.

“She took her?”

Killian whips around, his eyes darkening as he takes a step forward. “Aye,” he growls, “And where were you?”

Her mouth falls open and her gaze moves to Robin before she looks back at him, guilt on her face before her eyes turn hard.

“Zelena took my _heart_!” she barks.

He moves to get in her face, when he’s stopped by Robin and Henry.

“How the bloody hell did that happen?” he growls.

Regina presses her lips together and squares her shoulders. “It doesn’t matter. What matters now is going to defeat her…”

“Aye,” he hisses. “I’ll do it myself.”

“You can’t face her on your ow—” David starts.

“Watch me,” he interrupts, turning to walk the opposite way down the hall.

He doesn’t need anyone’s help, he’s done perfectly well without it before.

“Killian…” Henry calls out, but he continues to walk, blind hatred guiding his way.

He hears his name called again but it’s like white noise, nothing can or will come in the way of him getting his daughter back.

“Dad!”

That makes him stop. His heart clenches in his chest and he turns to face him, tears welling in his eyes.

“Please don’t go alone,” the lad whispers to him. “Let our family go with you.”

He’s silent for a long while, his insides pulling him in different directions. On one end, he wants to run out those doors and rip Zelena to shreds, but his son is standing before him, in need of comfort, needing to be assured he will return.

His stare moves to the open door to Emma’s room. She’s lying on the bed, eyes on the ceiling. Her mother approaches them.

“She’s hasn’t said a word,” she whispers, her voice laced with sorrow. “She just keeps staring offer into space. Whale’s going to check on her now.”

The heartache starts creep back in and it takes all his strength not to let it swallow him whole.

Looking down at the ground, he takes a deep breath and nods.

“Aye, I won’t go alone.” He reaches out and pulls Henry to him, hugging the boy close before he kisses his forehead and guides him to Snow. “Take care of your mother, lad. I’ll be back soon.”

He turns and walks over to where David, Regina and Robin are waiting.

Pushing past them, he mumbles, “Let’s finish this.”

* * *

It doesn’t take them long to figure out that Zelena is in the barn at the docks. There are monkey’s flying around above it, keeping guard and making sure no one gets near, and there is a vortex shooting up into the air. His stomach twists into a horrible knot when he sees that.

The truck is barely stopped before he’s jumping out and running toward the barn.

A monkey comes swooping down to attack him, but he lifts his pistol in the air and shoots.

“Remember,” Robin shouts over the screeching. “These creatures are our friends!”

Regina mumbles something before she blasts them back, rendering them useless. When they are gone, Killian runs toward the doors, but a piercing scream makes him stop.

He knows without a doubt it’s his daughter and panic washes over him. It’s not the same crying he heard just an hour before when she was born, no, this is a scream filled with fear. It’s something he _never_ wants to hear again.

The barn doors blow open a second later and he rushes in, the knot in his stomach only tightening when he sees his daughter laying on the hard, cold ground. Her little legs and arms kicking and flailing while she continues to scream.  

“Come to say your final goodbye’s, Captain?”

His lips curl up in a sneer and he’s about to step forward when Rumple walks up, holding his arm out in front of him. His daughter’s screams continue and without thinking, he runs to her, only to be pushed back by Zelena’s magic.

She giggles and he growls as he jumps to his feet.

“Are you just going to bloody stand there?” he snaps at Regina.

Her mouth opens and closes before Zelena answers for her, “She can’t do anything to stop me. She’s as dark as they come.”

“You don’t know anything about me,” Regina hisses. “We’re not going to let you get away with this.”

Killian throws his pistol to the ground and pulls out his cutlass, holding it in front of him, ready for any attack that may come his way.

“Go,” David tells him, his head motioning toward the screaming babe. “We got your back.”

“And I’ve got your heart,” Robin says to Regina.

Killian glares at Zelena and steps to the right. She gives him a sick smile while Regina begins to speak to her, telling her to stop, but the Witch isn’t listening.

She smirks and turns back to Rumple, “Rid me of those pests.”

His lips turn up in a sneer as he holds up his cutlass and he growls, “Step away from my child, Crocodile!”

“Get the dagger!” Rumple hisses. “And the Dark One will be on your side.”

His cutlass flies from his hand just before he’s tossed back into the wall. With a grunt, he pushes himself up from the ground and glares.

“She’s a _baby_ ,” he hollers at him. “Even for a coward like yourself should know this isn’t right!”

Rumples lips tighten before he repeats, “Get the dagger… or I will destroy you all.” His arm flings toward David and Robin, throwing them against another wall. “I have no _choice._ ”

Regina charges for Zelena, just barely ducking a fireball while David runs toward Rumple, distracting him. He hears the Prince holler out in pain, but he can’t waver, he needs to get his daughter.

He looks up just in time to see Robin reach for Regina’s heart, but the vortex continues. There’s a crash from behind him and he’s inches away from his little girl when he’s stopped.

A gut-wrenching howl escapes his throat as he tries to force his muscles to move, but they are locked. Rage washes over him when he hears Zelena’s giggle before she appears in front of him.

“Now, what do you think you’re doing, Captain?” Zelena grabs him by the throat and tightens her grip.

His muscles unlock and his hand goes to grab her wrist.

“Did you _really_ think you could stop me?” she asks with a giggle. “Only light magic can defeat me, dearie, and I’m afraid you’re fresh out.”

His eyes move around the barn, Robin is helping Regina to her feet and Rumple is standing over David, his arm held up, ready to strike. The vortex continues to swirl behind him and the piercing screams of his daughter echoes in his ears.  From the corner of his eye, he sees Regina approach, and when Zelena turns her head, he makes his move.

Lifting his left arm in the air, he brings his hook down into her shoulder. Zelena screams out in pain and drops him to the ground, along with the dagger, while smoke rises from her wound.

“What did you do to me?!” she shrieks.

His eyes widen before he quickly scrambles to his feet and moves forward with his hook high in the air. Zelena attempts to grab it, but her hand starts to sizzle and smoke the instant her fingers wrap around it.

She lets out another yell of pain and tries to move back, but with a quick lurch of his arm, Killian catches her elbow with his hook, trapping her in his grasp.

“It’s not possible!” She yells. “It’s not possible!”

He reaches up and yanks her pendant from her neck, stopping the vortex behind him, and throws it onto the ground. Regina steps up next to him as Zelena stumbles back, landing on the ground with wide eyes.

“What did you do?” Regina asks.

“Nothing… my hook…”

“Emma,” David chokes out, rubbing his neck while he and Rumple run up. “Her magic must have transferred to your hook somehow.”

Killian looks down at his hook, it doesn’t look any different, except it’s now covered in the Witch’s blood.

Regina bends to pick up her pendant and says, “It’s over, Zelena.”

Another piercing cry rings out and he moves without thinking. Rushing over to his daughter, he picks her up off the ground. Never did he think the first time he would hold her would be under these circumstances.

“Shh,” he hushes her. “Daddy’s got you.”

“Is she alright?” David breathes out in fear.

Killian’s lips tug up into a smile as his daughter stops her crying and looks up at him. Her eyes are wide and bright while she reaches up toward him.

“Aye,” he whispers, his voice stuttering but strong. “She’s strong, just like her mum.”

Regina mumbles something about taking care of Zelena and he can’t find it in himself to care. He doesn’t take his eyes off the babe in his arms the entire ride back to the hospital, he’s not sure he would be able to if he tried.

“She looks just like Emma,” David tells him when they pull back up to the hospital.

Light hair lays on top of her head, and her eyes, that are currently staring up at him in wonder, are dark blue. Her cheeks are still wet from her tears and there is a hint of dirt on them.

Reaching up, he softly wipes the dirt from her cheek and answers, “Of course she does, she’s bloody gorgeous.”

David chuckles and pats his back. There’s a crowd as they walk down the hall, it seems half the town has showed up in their absence but it matters not. The only thing he’s concerned about is getting her back to Emma.

Luckily, the Prince takes the lead and ushers them away and before he knows it, he’s standing outside of Emma’s room. His heart breaks when he sees her lying in her bed in her mother’s arms, with their son locked securely in her embrace.

Henry is the one that notices him first. He sits up with a gasp, making Emma’s head snap forward. Her eyes instantly widen and a loud sob escapes her. With her right arm still around Henry, she reaches out for them and Killian is all too happy to step forward and place their daughter in her arms.

Soft gasps of relief expel past her lips and her eyes squeeze shut as she brings the babe’s head to her lips.

“I knew you could do it,” Henry whispers to him.

He wants to answer him, thank him for believing in him to succeed, but he finds the words stuck in the back of his throat. So, he just presses his lips to Henry’s temple and tries hold back his tears of joy.

Wrapping his left arm around the lad’s back and placing his right arm on Emma’s legs, he smiles and pulls them close… his family.

* * *

* * *

**_Four Years Later_ **

Emma yawns and scratches the back of her head as she walks out of her bedroom. Going to Henry’s room, she opens the door to find him still asleep.

“Hey, kid! Time to get up and ready for school.”

He groans, but when he starts to move she knows he’s awake. Leaving his door open, she walks down to her daughter’s room and opens her door. It’s no surprise that she finds the room empty. It seems that her daughter has inherited her father’s ability to wake with the sun, though it seems she’s inherited _her_ tendency to be less than neat.

Something that drives Killian up a wall.

Picking up the clothes, she places them in the small hamper and smiles when she sees the story book laying open on the desk. It’s open to a page with a drawing of her and Killian on top of the beanstalk.

About a year after their daughter was born, after they defeated the latest villain, they found out Henry was the new author. He was entrusted to record the stories just as the author was before him, and for his little sister’s third birthday, he gave her the story of how her and Killian met and fell in love.

At first, Killian was hesitant. He was scared to have his daughter know the dark parts of him, but Emma insisted. She didn’t need to know specific details, but it was important that she knew all sides of her father.

Thinking back on the moment she explained it to the little girl still brings tears to her eyes. For being only three— _four in eleven days, mommy!_ –she is extremely smart. She picks up on things a lot faster than any normal child, and she’s always eager to learn something new. She understands the fact that her father was a different person long ago, just like they all were, but he’s a hero now and that’s all that matters.

That night when Killian came home, she ran to her father, motioned for him to pick her up and kissed the tip of his nose before whispering, “You’re a hero, Daddy.”

Killian cried tears of joy that night, still unbelieving that he deserved such happiness in his life.

Emma closes the book and places it back on the shelf before she walks down the stairs.

“Daddy?” A little voice echoes from the kitchen.

“Yes, bean?”

“Did mommy really leave you on a beanstalk?”

Emma stops just outside of the kitchen and bites her lip with a smile.

She hears Killian chuckle followed by the clatter of dishes. “That she did.”

“Was it because you were Captain Hook then?”

Her hand makes her way to her mouth to cover her giggle.

“Well, if you ask your mum she would say so, but I say it was because I’m so devilishly handsome she had to get away before she fell in love with me.”

Emma rolls her eyes while her daughter giggles, “Dadddyyy… Mommy fell in love with you when you were in New York!”

She hears Killian chuckle, “Aye, she did.”

“And you loved her since Neverland.”

“She believed me to be handsome though!”

Emma decides then to walk into kitchen. Their daughter is sitting at their kitchen table, her little legs swinging while she holds her spoon in her hand. She’s wearing her black boots, black tights, a pair of denim shorts, with a white shirt, and her brown hair pulled into pig tails. She’s thankful Killian has gotten her ready because she doesn’t plan on going out of the house at all for the rest of the day.

“I wouldn’t listen to Daddy,” she starts, making her daughter’s gaze snap over. Her little green eyes brighten and a large smile appears on her face. “He’s getting pretty old, I think his memory is failing him.”

“Oi!”

“Hi mommy!”

Walking over to the table, she leans down and presses her lips to the little girl’s forehead. “Good morning, Lily.”

She catches Killian’s smile, the same one he does whenever anyone speaks their daughter’s name. They spent _weeks_ before she was born trying to pick out a name, and a few days after because they were still trying to get over the fact that Zelena almost used to her for her spell, and in the end, it was Henry who came up with the perfect one.

_“I was thinking…” Henry starts softly._

_They are all in Emma’s hospital room just staring at the newest member of their family. They’ve spent the last three nights there, none of them wanting to leave her side, luckily, Whale had been understanding and letting them stay longer than normal._

_Though, if she’s honest, she’d rather be home in her own bed, but she refuses to leave until they have a name for her._

_“What about Lillian?”_

_Emma looks up from staring at Killian holding their daughter, something that she’ll never get tired of doing. He holds her so close to his chest, and every couple seconds, he brings her head up to his nose to breathe in her scent while he whispers to his ‘little love’._

_She can see Killian go tense as his eyes move up to hers then over to their son._

_“W-where did you come up with that one, lad?”_

_Henry reaches over to run his finger over his little sister’s hand and smiles when she yawns._

_“I thought maybe she could be named after you and her Uncle Liam… we can call her Lily for short”_

_Her lips tug into a smile because thinks that the name is perfect, but when she looks over at Killian, she pauses. His eyes are sparkling with unshed tears and his brow is together._

_“If you don’t like it…” Henry trails off, his voice filled with uncertainty._

_Killian shakes his head and lets out a watery chuckle, “No, Henry. It’s— the name is lovely.” He’s silent for a moment before he looks back down at their daughter. “It was my mother’s name.”_

_Both Henry and Emma’s mouths drop. She knows a lot about Killian’s past, more than anyone, he’s told her. But he’s never spoken of his mother, all she knows is that she passed when he was very young and he only has few memories of her._

_Henry starts to shake his head, “It was just a suggestion, we don’t—”_

_“It’s perfect,” he answers, looking back up their son with a radiant smile. “Lillian Snow Jones.”_

Walking over to the counter, she smiles as she takes the coffee mug he is holding out for her and leans up on her toes to give him a soft kiss, “Good morning, Captain Jones.”

“Good morning, Mrs. Jones.”

Her smile widens and her gaze flickers over to the dining room where a photo from their wedding hangs on the wall. They married when Lily was one, neither one of them wanting to wait any longer, and in usual Storybooke fashion, it was a grand affair.

They were married on the beach at sunset, her father gave her away while Henry stood up with Killian as his best man with the whole town in attendance. For the first time in her life, she felt like an _actual_ princess… it was such a magical day.

Lily starts to go on about their story again, breaking her out of her thoughts, telling them her favorite parts when Henry comes barreling down the stairs.

“Hey, kid,” she calls out when he grabs a piece of toast. “Aren’t you going to eat anything else?”

“No, there’s a group of us meeting at Granny’s for breakfast.”

“Since when do you go to Granny’s for breakfast?”

“There’s a girl there!” Lily giggles, her mouth filled with cereal. “She’s really pretty!”

Henry’s eyes go wide before he turns to glare at his sister.

“ _Is_ there indeed?” Killian asks, his voice dripping with amusement. “Well, I like this tale already.”

“What girl?” Emma asks, skeptically.

Henry scrambles around the kitchen, trying to avoid them, but she doesn’t miss the small smile on his face when Killian reaches out to poke him with his hook in the side.

“It’s just—” He swats at Killian’s hook. “—it’s someone I go to school with.”

She opens her mouth to ask him more about it when the clock in the living room goes off.

“I’ve got to go,” he throws the toast in his mouth and kisses her cheek. “I’ll see you after school. Come on, Lily, it’s time to go.”

Their little girl jumps down from her seat and goes to rush out of the room when her father steps in front of her.

“Bean, what are you forgetting?”

Lily sighs, her curls bouncing as she turns back to the table and picks up her empty cereal bowl before she races over to the counter, steps up on her stool and puts it in the sink. Henry walks over with her school bag and helps her put it on, making Emma smile.

She had a fear, a couple days after Lily was born, when they were finally able to relax, that her son might become a little jealous of his sister. Since New York, it’s been the three of them… she didn’t want him to feel neglected or replaced, but it was the complete opposite.

Henry and Lily are thick as thieves and the best of friends, she looks up to him the same way she looks up to her father and her grandfather.

She watches her daughter run over to Killian and throw her arms around his legs, squeezing him tight as she says goodbye to him. Her husband leans down and pulls her up into his arms, his eyes closing as he breathes in the scent of her air, something he’s done since she was a baby, and kissing the side of her head.

“Have a good day, little love. I’ll be there once day care lets out.”

Emma kneels as she runs over to her and wipes some dried milk from her cheek. “Be good, sweetie.”

“Bye mommy!”

They both watch as their children walk out of the house and she sighs.

“Not going into work today, love?”

She places her mug down on the island and turns to watch him clean up the dishes in the sink. He could never let them sit, if there’s something in sink, he’s cleaning it right away. His OCD has calmed down since they’ve had Lily, trying to keep a house clean while having a three-year-old just about impossible, but there are still some things he can’t help but do.

“I asked Dad to work for me today.”

He turns back to her with his eyebrow up, “Everything alright?”

Taking a deep breath, places her palms on the island in front of her and says, “I’m late.”

His brow pinches together and he tilts his head, “I thought you said your father was working for you?”

She rolls her eyes but has a small smile on her face. Even though he’s a centuries year old pirate, he’s still a typical male.

“My period… it’s late.”

His eyes widen and his mouth falls open. She hates herself for the tiny bit of fear that still lingers in her for half a second, it’s small, microscopic, really, but it’s still there. Even after everything they’ve been through…

The Enchanted Forest, Neverland, New York, Camelot…

Thinking back on the dark time still sends shivers down her spine. She was terrified to take on the darkness and almost positive it would be the last time she ever saw her family again, but she knew she had to do it.

She remembers how her tears clouded her vision as Killian ran to her, their daughter in his arms, begging her not to go through with it. She remembers how she pressed her lips to Lily’s head and breathed in her sent, her tears dripping down onto her little face.

_“Emma, please, no… don’t do this.”_

_Her face contorts and her throat hurts from trying to hold back her sob. Without answering him, she reaches up and pulls his face to hers, pressing her lips against his._

_“I love you.” He chokes out a sob and when she steps back, he tries to follow but she shakes her head. “No!”_

_She watches as battles with himself. He wants to chase after her, but it’s too dangerous to bring Lily toward the darkness._

_“Find me,” she whispers right before she turns and stabs the dagger in the swirling tornado of darkness._

_The last thing she remembers seeing before it swallows her whole, is the look of complete fear in Killian’s eyes_

They showed up in Camelot days later, the whole group of them. Seeing her children again brought a smile to her face, but the way her daughter screamed when she tried to touch her still gives her nightmares.

“You’re with child?” he whispers.

The first day of her missed period, she brushed it off as nothing. Being the Savior and the Sheriff tends to be quite stressful so it’s not often her period runs late, but when five days passed, she noticed.

She went out to the store and bought a test, but threw it in the back of the drawer until she could speak to him. She wasn’t going to have what happened last time, she couldn’t hurt him like that ever again, even if she was wrong and she wasn’t pregnant, she wanted to include him.

“Maybe…”

“Are you certain?”

Brushing her fingers through her hair, she shrugs, “No. But I’m five days late, and I thought it couldn’t hurt to take a test. You don’t have to be with me, I just wanted to tel—”

“Of bloody course I want to be with you. Shall we take it now?”

She bites her lip and nods, “Yeah, I mean, if you want. The test is in the drawer in the bathroom.”

His fingers wrap around her wrist before she’s even done speaking and he pulls her toward the bathroom. She can’t help but giggle as he frantically searches the drawer until he pulls the box out and uses his hook to pierce it open and quickly picks up the fallen instructions.

Rolling her eyes, she snatches the test out of his hands.

“I know how to pee on a stick, Killian.”

He presses his lips together and gives her a blank stare before he turns back to the instructions.

“Bloody hell, Swan,” he winces. “What are these drawings?”

She huffs and rips the paper out of his hands, throwing it in the garbage before she turns back to the toilet.

“It’s supposed to be helpful, but honestly, I’ve always found them a little creepy.”

Leaning back against the counter, he crosses his arms while she takes the test and tilts his head. “That’s all that is required?”

“Pretty much,” she says with a sigh, capping the test and placing it on the counter. He moves to look at it while she pulls up her pants. “Babe, we have to wait three minutes.”

He runs his hand through his hair and lets out a huff. Ever the gentleman, he moves out of the way so that she can wash her hands and sits down on the closed toilet seat.

“Three minutes? That’s an awfully long time, love.”

Holding back her snort, she raises her eyebrow at him. “Seriously? Is the three-hundred-year-old pirate complaining about waiting three minutes?”

When she’s finished drying off her hands, he tugs her to him with his hook by the loop of her jeans and pulls her down to his lap.

“You know,” she begins as he wraps his arms around her waist and places his chin on her shoulder. “I could just be late, this doesn’t mean I’m pregnant, I haven’t gotten sick or anything.”

It’s only right to tell him so that he doesn’t get his hopes up, and he’s not disappointed if it comes up negative, but she has a feeling it was pointless. He moves to press his lips on the side of her neck and hums.

“I’m aware, love,” he reaches forward to pull the test off the counter and holds it in front of them. “But it’s best to make sure.”

She takes a deep breath and nods. This isn’t like the last two times she took the same test, she isn’t sitting by herself wondering what the hell she’s going to do with her life, scared that she’ll be a failure. Killian is with her, holding her close as they both stare at the test, three minutes seeming more like three years.

When the lines start to appear, she’s not sure if she’s slightly bouncing because of herself or because Killian is bouncing his knee.

But then they get their results and they both exhale at the same time.

Positive.

She’s barely turned to look at him before he’s taking her face in his hand and pressing his lips to hers. They whisper words of love and even though the fear of it being a ‘false positive’ repeats its self in the logical part of her brain, she’s too happy to care.

Tears wet their cheeks, but she’s not sure if it’s hers or his.

“Another one,” he mumbles against her lips. “We’re having another baby!” She giggles and wraps her arms around his shoulders. “I love you, Emma, I love you so bloody much.”

“I love you, too.”

They make an appointment with Whale the very next day, where he confirms that she is pregnant. They tell Henry and Lily first. Their daughter is so excited, she screams it to her grandparents the second they walk through the door.

Nine months later, she gives birth to beautiful blue eyed, blonde haired baby boy they name David Mac Jones.

He’s the spitting image of his father, though it seems he takes more to the Royal side of the family, growling at his older brother when he ruffles his hair, and scoffing at his sister whenever she suggests skipping school so they could go sailing.

Though he loves the sea just as much as his older sister, something they get from their father, and dreams of Captaining his own ship one day, he insists he must finish his schooling first.

Killian jokes that it’s all her father’s fault, he’s rubbing off on the boy, but she suggests he gets it from his Uncle Liam, and her husband smiles at that, admitting to her that he looks more like Liam than himself.

David is two and Lily is six when they find out they both have magic. Henry is packing up his car to head for college in New York, and they get so upset, all of Henry’s bags fly from the trunk and his belongings scatter across the lawn.

Emma is frightened while Killian takes it with stride, saying that it’s been something that he’s been waiting for.

Their life is far from perfect, living in Storybrooke there is always something showing up, trying to destroy their happiness, but they always come out the victors, because it’s what they do.

Because they have been and always will be…

Unbreakable.


	35. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can’t believe we’ve made it to this point, honestly. I remember when I started this story, it was after I saw this beautiful GIF Set by @shipsxahoy. It’s what inspired me to write Unbreakable and once I started, I never dreamed it would become what it has :D (you should also check out her other stuff because it’s amazing!)
> 
> I wanted to give a few thank you’s….
> 
> @letmedieahooker Alex, what can I say? Since just about the beginning you have helped me in every way possible with this story! You’ve talked me down when I was freaking out about not getting a chapter done, and you’ve been my ear when I was ranting about my frustrations. You’ve edited and helped so much, you are everything! Unbreakable wouldn’t be here without you <3
> 
> @irishcaptainodonoghue, thank you for the BEAUTIFUL banner you made for Unbreakable. I love it so much, you are so talented <3
> 
> @yeahiliketheredleatherjacket, girl, that video… if you guys haven’t watched it yet, you can here. Not just because it’s for Unbreakable, but because it’s also sooo good! Like, April, you’re the best ever!!! Also, because you let me send you random things from future chapters and you had no idea what they meant but loved them anyway!
> 
> Everyone that ever recommended, tagged, and/or nominated/voted for Unbreakable in the CS Fanfic Awards and/or blog recs, it’s such an amazing feeling to be listed with such amazing writers of stories that I fan out about, thank you <3 (and that you should all go read because seriously, those people are so beautifully talented, I wish I could pay them to write for me all the time)
> 
> To every single person that has commented, liked, and/or reblogged Unbreakable… I wish I could tell you exactly how much it means to me! You guys are everything and thank you for the bottom of my heart, it’s been an honor answering your questions, playing games with you, and reading your reactions!
> 
> And finally, to anyone that hasn’t commented, liked, and/or reblogged, thank you too for reading! I know some people just read and don’t do those things, it doesn’t mean you don’t love the story any less and doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate you taking the time to read! You are all amazing!
> 
> (links for things on my tumblr!)

**_Enchanted Forest - Seven Years Ago_ **

Hook picks at his shackle until he finally hears the click of the lock. Chuckling in triumph, he moves his wrist around before running toward the exit. He doesn’t know when that giant will be back and he doesn’t want to be anywhere in his firing line when he does.

Anyway, he has a score to settle.

He cracks his neck at the frustration that washes over him. He actually _trusted_ the Swan girl, let his guard down because he saw something in her, she reminded him much of himself…

And she was bloody gorgeous.

“Lost your bleeding mind over a pretty face,” he grumbles to himself.

It matters not, he’ll get down and try to get himself back in the good graces of Cora. He’s quite useful, she’ll be upset, but he has no doubt he can sway her to forgive his minor mishap. He was going to leave Swan on the beanstalk, he’ll tell her, that the plan was to steal the compass from Emma and bring it back to her.

She needn’t know the truth.

He’s just at the top of the stalk when the ground starts to shake under his feet. Turning to look back, he doesn’t see the giant yet, but he knows he’s coming. Hook starts to run and just before he gets to the opening, a golden vortex appears.

“Bloody hell.”

The vortex becomes larger and he moves to find another way out when the winds pick up and he’s thrown to the ground. Reaching out, he digs his fingers and his hook into the ground, frantically he looks around for something to get a better grip on, but there is nothing. The winds pick up more and his hook slips through the dirt.

He cries out and tries to keep his grip on ground, but the vortex behind him is too strong and it finally pulls him free. His body falls freely, flashes of white all around him, until he’s thrown down onto the ground.

A grunt escapes his lips as his head smacks onto a hard surface. Pushing himself up, he lifts his head and stops when he notices his surroundings. He’s no longer on top of the beanstalk, he seems to be in a barn of some kind.

With his brow furrowed, he stands and looks around. He’s by the sea, that he’s certain, he’d know that smell in the air anywhere, but it still doesn’t explain _where_ he is. He walks over to a door and is just about to open it when he hears a voice outside.

“Yeah, I saw it… I’m right outside… I’ll let you know.”

Looking around, he spots a wooden fence and ducks behind it. He may be able to handle himself, but he also knows never to get in a situation without knowing what you're up against. The door opens and he peers over the top of the fence, his jaw clenching when he sees Emma Swan walk in with a weapon drawn.

She must have fallen through the same vortex as he. His lips twitch as he watches and tries to think of some sort of revenge for her leaving him. With her arms still up, she walks to the middle of the barn and looks around before finally putting it down to her side.

_Bloody hell, she’s still gorgeous._

Shaking his head to rid himself of those thoughts, he continues to watch her, ignoring how easy it would be to get the upper hand in the situation and staying put.

When she kneels to inspect the ground where he landed, he leans forward to get a better look, but his hook slips, scraping loudly against the wood.

Emma quickly stands and whips to turn toward him, her weapon once again in the air.

“Show yourself!”

With a smirk, he steps out from behind the fence with his hand and hook outstretched. “Going to shoot me, lass?”

Her shoulders slump in relief and she drops her pistol, which confuses him. She doesn’t seem too shocked to see him and he’s not sure why.

“What the hell are you doing?” She tilts her head and a lets out a little chuckle while motioning to his body. “And why are you dressed like that?”

“Why are you dressed like _that_?” he snaps, motioning to her knit hat and long coat.

Her lips part and her brow goes together. “Are you still upset about this morning?”

Crossing his arms over his chest, “Did you believe I would just forget about what you did to me?”

“You said that you were okay with it.”

“When did I ever say that?” She opens her mouth but he cuts her off, “No, I believe the words were ‘I risked my own safety to help you’ and then you _still_ left me chained and alone.”

Amusement shows on her face as her lips tug up into a smile, “What are you talking about?”

“Don’t act daft, darling, you’re better than that.”

She stares at him for a few seconds before her eyes go wide and her mouth drops open.

“What happened in here?”

“Your guess is as good as mine.” He motions around the barn. “I was just about to make my way down the beanstalk when a portal opened and I was sucked into it. Landed just over there.”

Her gaze moves to where he points. “A portal?” Her face scrunches in confusion. “What did it look lik— wait, did you just say _beanstalk_?”

“Hit your head on your way down, did you?” She continues to stare at him and his frustration hits its peak. “What _is_ it?”

“Hook?”

“Aye?”

Her eyes go wide and a puff of air passes her lips before she takes a step back. “This isn’t possible.”

“Did you miss me?” He smirks and takes a step forward. “Now I think it’s time you and I have a little ch—”

Before he can finish his sentence, she raises her hand and everything goes black.

* * *

He awakes to voices and his head pounding.

“How did this happen?” Comes an angry female voice.

“Don’t you think if I knew that I would have fixed it by now?”

“Well, why the hell did you bring him here?”

“It was the first place I thought of! It’s not like I could let him roam around town!”

Bringing his hand up, he pinches the bridge of his nose, trying to sooth the ache in his head while they continue to talk.

“You know what’s going to happen if Ki—”

“I’m aware! Luckily, he’s out with my dad and Robin. We just have to make sure it stays that way.”

He looks over to see Emma and… _the Evil Queen_?... standing a few feet from him. Emma notices him first and motions with her head.

Sitting up on the cot, he leans his elbows on his knees and lets out a huff when he notices his hook is gone.

“Again?” he murmurs while motioning to his missing attachment. “Do you have some sort of fascination with my hook that I don’t know about, because if that’s the case,” he stands and walks up to the bars with a smirk on his lips. “I’ll be all too happy accommodate.”

Regina rolls her eyes while Emma turns to give him a blank stare. He almost chuckles because her look of complete annoyance is the only thing that seems right.

“It’s somewhere safe,” Regina huffs.

“Well, forgive me if I’m not inclined to trust you, _Your Majesty._ ”

Her eyes blaze with anger and she takes a step forward, but stops when Emma reaches over the desk to grab the Queen’s arm.

“Okay,” Emma sighs. “What’s the last thing you remember, Hook?”

“Well,” he leans his shoulder against the cell. “The last thing I remember is being chained on top of beanstalk with a giant. Now, you have me locked in a cell. Trust really doesn’t come easy to you, does it?”

Her eyes sadden for a quick second before they flicker over to the Queen who turns to her with an eyebrow up.

“The beanstalk?” Regina whispers, too low for someone to hear, but he’s spent years perfecting his hearing and heightening his senses. His ears have long since been trained to hear things a normal person wouldn’t. “How did—”

Emma holds up her hand and shakes her head. When Regina questions her, she motions to him.

“He can hear you.”

He hides his surprise at her knowledge of his talent with a grin when Regina looks back at him. Emma motions to the hall and he grinds his teeth as they walk out. There’s something they aren’t telling him, he just knows it… they are acting strange.

The Swan girl, to start. There is something different about the way she looks at him, but he can’t seem to put his finger on it. Those walls she had on the stalk are still there, but it almost seems she’s struggling to keep them up, they’re not as strong as they were the last time they spoke.

She’s still breathtakingly beautiful, that much is obvious. But there are things; her hair is longer, her eyes aren’t as dark and guarded... but that still isn’t it.

He shakes his head, he doesn’t have time to figure out what’s different with her when he doesn’t even know where he is. He’s in some sort of cell, that he’s sure of, but there are things he’s never seen before and it’s a bit confusing.

His head whips over to the window. There are vessels moving around outside along with people walking by in clothing that closely matches what Emma and Regina are wearing. A slow smile forms on his face and he lifts his hand to grab the bars.

Could it be that this is the realm without magic, the realm he and Cora were finding their way to? The realm the Crocodile calls home?

Eyeing the bars, he looks for a weakness. It shouldn’t be too hard to break out, this isn’t his first cage. Pulling up, the bars stay intact and a growl rumbles in the back of his throat. He reaches out and brushes his fingers over the lock. A low chuckle passes his lips when he realizes how easy it will be to pick with just…

“Ah,” he says to himself.

Walking back over to the cot, he lifts the mattress hoping to find some sort of old nail that he may pry out to pick the lock with, but he’s met with an even more pleasant surprise. The cot seems to be held up with curved metal pieces and all he’d have to do is break off a piece to make the perfect device.

A door closes and he drops the mattress back down before he walks to the bars. Emma walks in with her brow together and her hands clenched at her sides.

“What’s a man got to do to get something to drink?”

“Excuse me?”

He shrugs and loops his thumb through his belt. “Not offering your prisoner simple pleasantries, that’s very bad form, Swan.”

“You’re not my prisoner,” she mumbles.

“Aren’t I?” he asks darkly. “You knock me out, cage me, take away the one thing I may use to protect myself.”

With her lips pressed together, she walks over to a desk and opens a drawer. He has difficulty restraining the surprise that drifts across his features as she pulls out his hook, and his lips part as she steps up to the cell and hands it to him.

He glances down at it and raises his eyebrow to her. “You’re not worried I might use it against you?”

She shakes her head with a snort. “I think I can handle myself.”

An unwarranted tingle runs up his arm when his fingers brush her palm, taking his hook and clicking it into place with his eyes on hers the entire time. “Thank you,” he murmurs, a little more wonder than he intended slipping into his voice.

“Don’t mention it,” she answers quietly, crossing her arms over her chest.

It’s looking then that he realizes how much her stomach is sticking out. There’s a distinct curve that he’s certain wasn’t there hours before and he frowns down at it.

“What’s this?”

When she raises her eyebrow in question, he gestures loosely at her stomach.

With a roll of her eyes, she turns and walks back to her desk. “It’s called a baby.”

He tries not to think about how the bump of new life only makes her even more beautiful, a glow he’s sure he’s not imagin— he pushes the thought away. They had a deal, he trusted her and she _abandoned_ him, a small gesture of returning his hook doesn’t make that less unreasonable.

“That much is clear, but would you care to explain how it’s possible? As far as I know, you weren’t with child the last I saw you.”

She sits down at her desk with a sigh. “The last thing you remember is me leaving you on the beanstalk?”

“Aye...” he confirms tentatively. “What of it?”

Brushing her hair from her face, taking a deep breath and meeting his eyes, she answers, “That was nearly seven years ago.”

He tenses, his lips parting. “What?”

“Somehow,” she begins slowly, putting her elbows down on the desk. “A time portal was opened and it looks like you fell into it.”

Hook shakes his head. Seven years? He’s somehow been transported seven bloody years? This isn’t possible. In all the magic he’s studied, time travel is a myth. It’s never been done before.

“How can that be?”

“I don’t know. It’s never been done before. Attempted? Yes, but never succeeded.”

He rolls his eyes and motions to himself, “Someone apparently succeeded, I’m bloody well here, aren’t I?”

“The only person who ever came close died,” she explains. “Besides, there are specific ingredients you need to attempt it and I would know if they were taken.”

“Who would have magic so dark that…” he trails off and his face turns hard. “The Crocodile.”

“No, not him.”

“But he helped.”

Softly, she mumbles, “It was a long time ago.”

“Don’t tell me you’re defending him!” he spits out.

Her face scrunches in disgust, “Of _course_ not. I’m just sayi—”

“Where is he?”

Emma meets his gaze, “Gold isn’t here.”

“Gold?” he asks, he shakes his head, face creasing into a frown.

“Rumpelstiltskin. He hasn’t been for a long while.”

His entire body goes stiff and he tilts his head. There’s something she’s holding back, he can tell.

“He’s gone? Indefinitely?”

She presses her lips together, “Just gone.”

His fingers wrap around the bar in front of him and he looks to the ground. For years he searched out a way to kill the Dark One and when he was told of this new realm, he was promised he would finally have his chance. There was no magic and he would be able to kill him without needing the dagger.

But it seems the Crocodile has once against slipped from his grasp.

“Where is he?” When she doesn’t answer him, his eyes snap up to hers. “You at least owe me that!”

“Owe you?”

“Aye,” he hisses. “After everything I did for you, taking you up that stalk, switching my alliances… you rewarded me by treating me as if I was nothing! Abandoning me without a second thought for what may happen.”

Her eyes shine before she moves them down to her lap.

“That wasn’t the reason I left you,” she whispers.

“I didn’t tell you one lie… I worked beside you…”

“I know.”

When she looks back up at him, he’s surprised to see what appear to be tears in her eyes. It’s true, the last time he saw her she could barely look at him, but she wasn’t _crying_ about it.

Some sort of ringing echoes in the room and he sees her jump before she reaches across the desk to grab a device and bring it to her ear.

“Hey, kid… Everything is fine, what’s up?... No—” her eyes flicker over to him before she looks at the ground. “—he’s out with David and Robin… Look, I need you to take your sister and go back to the house… I know what I said earlier, but you two can’t… Henry…” she sighs and moves to walk out of the room again.

He no longer cares for her secrets, all he cares about is finding the Crocodile. He isn’t dead, she’s made that clear, which means he can still find him and get his revenge. Luckily, he’s a patient man.

“You can’t just leave me locked in here,” he growls when she walks back into the room.

With another sigh, she places the device back on the desk, “I can’t let you run around town, so, yes, I’m going to keep you locked in there until I can figure out how to get you back to your own time.”

Locking his jaw, he turns his head and tries to reign in his anger. “And why is that?” She ignores his question and sits down behind the desk again. “Don’t trust me?” She looks up at him with a blank stare and he snorts. “Oh _that’s_ right, you don’t. What’s the matter, Swan? Afraid of what I’ll do?”

She reaches over and lays something down as she shakes her head, “No. I already told you, Gold isn’t here.”

“Then I’ll find him,” he hisses, his hand clenching the bar in front of him. “You will not stand in the way of my vengeance! Not again.”

“What were you going to do even if he _was_ around,” she snaps. “There’s magic here, you’re not that stupid.”

“Cora claimed this land to be free of it.”

She looks up at him with raised eyebrows before she stands and walks over to the cell. Lifting her hand, she holds it out and with a puff of smoke, a glass of water appears. Pushing it through the bars, she shoves it into his chest, forcing him to grab it so it doesn’t fall to the ground.

“Bloody hell,” he whispers, looking down at it.

“Gold brought magic here years ago,” she crosses her arms over her stomach. “Right before I came to the Enchanted Forest, actually.”

He shakes his head and steps back to sit down on the cot. He’s usually prepared for plans to change, he’s lived long enough to know that things rarely go how they are supposed to, but time travel… he was not prepared for that.

Lifting the glass to his mouth, he mumbles, “This situation really calls for rum.”

Emma snaps her fingers and the glass in his hands changes to a flask. He blinks down at it before he holds it up and motions to her in thanks.

“Want some?” he holds it out to her and she tilts her to give him a blank stare.

“I’m pregnant, remember?”

His face drops, “Oh, yeah.”

They are both quiet for a long while, Hook sipping on his rum while Emma twirls the ring on her finger. It’s a beautiful ring, sparkles every time it hits the light, and he pushes down his feelings of jealousy. Despite what they’ve been through, she is still a remarkable woman, he’s known almost since the moment they’ve met.

It makes him wonder about the man who was lucky enough to win her heart.

“So what of the husband?” She looks up at him with her brow together and he motions to her hand. “Your ring, it’s beautiful. The man who gave it to you has fine taste.”

Her lips twitch and she looks down at it. He knows that look, it’s the look of someone in love and he’s hit with the memory of one of their first conversations.

_“No, I’ve never been in love.”_

“He does,” she says with a smile. “I’ve loved it since the moment he gave it to me.”

Wiping his lips, he nods, “Seems you’ve come a long way since our little encounter.” Another smile graces her lips and she rubs her stomach. “Good for you.”

He takes another pull from his flask in an attempt to ease the ache in his chest. He’s known for a long time that such happiness wasn’t in his future, the Dark One made sure of that when he took Milah from him.

When he first met Emma, he thought she felt the same, that love wasn’t in her future, to him it was mere hours before, but for her it’s been seven years. It’s good to see that the fates decided to spare at least one of them.

“And what of me?”

Her face scrunches together in confusion. “What about you?”

“What’s become of myself? We’re seven years in the future… unless the last time we saw each other was on top of that stalk.”

She masks her face again and says, “It wasn’t the last time.”

He eyes her for a few moments before he tilts his head, “What are you keeping from me?”

“Nothing. I don’t know what’s become of you.”

“You’re a terrible liar,” he states. “Do you forget what I told you? Open book, love, easy for me to read.” He stands and walks back to the bars. “Now, what has become of me?” She’s still silent and his eyebrow ticks. “Oh, am I dead?”

Rolling her eyes, she shakes her head, “No, you’re not dead.”

“Ah, so you _do_ know what’s become of me.” He smirks. “Tell me, am I still devilishly handsome?”

When she chuckles and he can’t help the smile that graces his lips.

She truly is beautiful…

The sound of the door opening down the hall makes her jump up and rush out of the room. He hears a few mumbled voices and strains himself to hear the conversation.

“What are you doing here?!” There’s a response, but it’s too low for him to hear. “No, absolutely not… I don’t care if you explained it, she’s too… baby, yes you are… Let Henry take you back to… No!”

The sound of quick footsteps echo and he looks up just in time to see a little girl run into the room with Emma and a young lad behind her. The little lass stops when she sees him, her green eyes going wide and a small smile appearing on her face.

Everyone in the room falls silent and the air goes thick. It’s almost funny to him, he can tell Emma doesn’t want him to meet her children. The lad is no doubt the same one she was so worried about getting back to and though the little lass has dark hair, she’s the spitting image of her mum. But he would never hurt a child… no matter what she may think of him.

“You’re Captain Hook!”

A smile forms on his face as he leans against the bars, “Ah, so you’ve heard of me, have you?” She nods, her dark curls bobbing as she does and he chuckles. “All good things, I hope?”

The little lass giggles, “Your ship is the Jolly Roger!”

“Well,” he says with a smile and a shrug. “It seems you do know much. What’s your name, lass?”

“My name is Lilli—”

“Lily,” Emma says, cutting her off. “Her name is Lily.”

Hook tilts his head in wonder. Another thing she doesn’t want him to know. The little girl looks back at her mother and nods, “Right.” She looks back at him. “My name is Lily.”

He kneels so he’s the same height as the girl and sticks his hand out through the bars, “Lily, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Emma’s hand goes to her mouth and the young lad smirks while the little girl steps up and takes his hand. Hook brings it to his lips and places a light kiss on her knuckles, making her giggle again.

“My daddy does that, too!”

“Does he now?” he asks, his voice soft and light. “Your father must be a real gentleman because it’s what you are to do when meeting a lovely lady.”

“He is!” she says in excitement as she bounces on her feet. “And a hero!”

He ignores the sting that word gives him and forces a smile.

“Aye, I bet he is.”

Lily smiles at him and he can’t help but give her a genuine one in return.

“Why are you in grandpa’s cell?” She turns back to her mother. “Mommy, why is he in jail?”

He looks up at Emma with a smirk who presses her lips together. “It’s complicated, baby. Why don’t you let Henry take you over to Regina and Robin’s house? Roland and Uncle Leo are there, I’m sure you can—”

“But Mommy, I want to hear some stories from Captain Hook! Daddy never tells me about him.”

He’s starting to like this little girl more and more, she’s feisty and curious, just like her mother.

“Your husband knows me, does he?”

Emma and her son exchange a look before she mumbles, “Something like that.”

“By your tone, I can see my reputation precedes me.”

“Mr. Smee says that Captain Hook is the freest pirate in all the seas!”

His brow goes together while the lad chuckles, “Fiercest, Lil.”

The little girl presses her lips together and nods, “Right, that’s what I said!”

Hook chuckles in the back of his throat and shakes his head. “So you know my first mate, then?”

Lily opens her mouth, but her mother stops her, “You already know Smee was brought over with the original curse.”

His tongue pokes out to lick his bottom lip as he tries to hide his amusement. Her daughter has been a short amount of time and already has given him more information than Emma has wanted to share.

Oh, he likes the little lass indeed.

“Mom,” the lad turns to her. “I think we’ll be okay. I told you she wanted to see you and you know how she gets.”

Emma sighs and runs her hands through her hair again. “Yes, I know.” She looks over her daughter, who is giving her the most adorable pout Hook has ever seen and relents. “Alright, fine. You two can stay. But Henry, I need you to call your father. It’s better if he doesn’t know what’s going on…”

Henry puts his hands up and steps back, “I’m not going to lie to him.”

“You don’t have to lie! Just… don’t mention anything. I need to know when he’s going to be back.”

The lad eyes her before she ushers him away. With a huff, he pulls his own device out of his pocket and puts it to his ear. His eyes move over to him and he gives a slight nod before he speaks into the device.

“Hey…” he turns and walks down to the hall.

“Will you tell me about the Jolly Roger?” Lily asks with excitement. “Oh! Will you tell me about being a pirate?!”

He chuckles while Emma rolls eyes. “Lily…”

“You like pirate’s, do you?”’

Lily nods and sits down on the ground in front of his cell. “Have you ever found buried treasure?”

“Aye,” he leans closer to the bars and gives her a small smirk. “I’ll tell you, but only if you take a pirate’s oath to never speak of such things again.”

“I promise!” she insists with wide eyes. “I’m a really good secret keeper! Daddy says I’m the best there is!”

“It sounds like your father is very proud of you.”

“Yeah,” Lily moves and crosses her legs in front of her. “My daddy is the best daddy in the whole world.”

She waves her arms around and Hook can’t help but chuckle.

“One time,” she starts. “Henry was taken by these bad people and Daddy took everyone to the bad place to save him even though he didn’t ever want to go back there because it was a really bad place, and scary,” her face turns serious and he has to hold back his chuckle. “Oh! And he saved grandpa, he pushed through these big bushes and made grandpa all better again!”

It doesn’t surprise him to hear that man Emma has chosen is a great hero, it’s what she deserves and to see what a beautiful child they have raised… he doesn’t have much experience with children. The last child he had the pleasure of running into was a lost boy and though he might have looked youthful, he was anything but.

But Lily, she is the complete opposite and lovely in every way. He finds himself smiling and laughing at her questions and every time she giggles, he feels lighter than he has in a long while.

He imagines this is what his life would have been if Bae hadn’t turned him away, if he hadn’t given him to Pan in anger… minus the cage, and it saddens him. But he’s happy to see that the little girl is happy, that she has a family that loves her.

He’s just in the middle of telling her about how he fought his way out of a group of mermaids after he fell into the ocean when Henry comes rushing back into the room.

“Mom… he’s on his way.”

Emma shoots up from her desk with a look of panic on her face. “What? Why?”

“Leroy saw you down by the docks…”

She curses under her breath and runs her hand through her hair.

“I so don’t need this today,” she mumbles to herself.

Hook raises his eyebrow, “What’s wrong?”

“Looks like you’re going to be meeting my husband after all.”

A smirk forms on his face and his voice drips with curiosity, “Is that right?”

Before she can answer, the door down the hall slams open and he hears her name being shouted. The man comes around the corner and Hook looks up only to have his heart just about stop. He blinks twice, and a third time for good measure, but the sight before him continues to defy any logic. He meets his own piercing blue gaze, a hundred thoughts all running through his mind but none of them resolving the fact that on the other side of the room is… him.

“What in the hell…”

It’s as if time itself slows and his heart starts to pound in his chest. He barely registers Emma moving to stand between him and… well… _him_ , with her hands up. His brow goes together as he tries to figure out what she would be so worried abou—

“Daddy!” Lily cries out in excitement as she pushes herself up off the ground and runs to him.

His counterpart steps forward at lightning speed, sweeping the little lass into his arms and holding her close.

Hook takes a shaking gasp as the pieces fall into place, his brows furrowed and eyes welling up as he looks to Emma, hoping something in her expression might explain the unfathomable situation before him.

She steps toward the cell, but his future self reaches out to stop her, “Emma, love, stay away from him.” He turns to the boy, “Lad, I want you to take your sister far away from here.”

Clinging to a bar of his cell, Hook stands, looking at Lily’s dark hair, remarkably similar to his own, and taking another heavy breath. “Emma…?” he asks weakly, gazing at her. “Is it true? You’re… we…” He shakes his head as he trails off, squinting his eyes closed. “This is some trick, it has to be… there’s no way…”

He hears her breathe out his moniker, but she’s stopped again. “Emma, don’t speak to him!”

Lily is handed off to the lad and he physically has to hold himself back from reaching out for her.

_No, please, let me just look at her…_

“Dad,” Henry sighs and his head snaps up. _Dad? No, he couldn’t possibly…_ “I don’t think it’s going to be—”

“Henry, please do as I say!”

His head is still swimming as Emma turns back to her… _family_ … and holds her hands up again, “Killian—” Hook sucks in another breath. She said his name… his _actual_ name. “—calm down. Everything is fine.”

“Daddy, I don’t want to leave!” Lily whines.

The other… Killian… steps in front of them, blocking his view, before he leans over and presses his lips to Lily’s forehead.

“Go with Henry, sweetling.”

Hook watches the scene through his eyelashes, head lowered as he tries to process. The moment disjointed, like he’s having a vision of himself living a life he can’t have, a life he hasn’t earned the right to have. He takes a few steps back from the bars and crumples down onto the cot, raising his hand to rub his eyes. Perhaps he will wake up from this insane dream soon, or perhaps the giant poisoned him and this hallucination of a life with the beautiful woman across the room was to be his dying thoughts.

Looking up when the voices start to rise, he sees Emma step forward and speak loudly, “Okay. Henry, take your sister back to the house. We’ll be there later.”

“The house?!” Killian chokes out. “Take her out of town, I don’t want them anywhere near hi—”

“I would never hurt them,” Hook protests just loud enough to interrupt, his voice shaking as he looks up at his future self. “You know that.”

He sees Killian’s back go stiff, before he growls at him, just barely turning his head, “You don’t deserve them.”

Clenching his fist, his eyes stay trained on the ground because he’s right. He _doesn’t_ deserve them… he doesn’t deserve any of this.

He’s not worthy…

Henry turns to take her away and he finds himself standing again, moving closer to get one last glimpse before they disappear.

“Bye, Captain Hook!”

He stares past Emma at the children leaving the room, his heart clenching in his chest as Lily calls out to him. After a long moment, he looks back to Emma, fingers tightening into a fist and a tear rolling down his cheek when he blinks.

“She… she’s ours?” he asks, voice barely above a whisper.

“Mine!” Killian growls at him before his head whips over to Emma. “You let her _speak_ to him?!”

“He’s not going to hurt a child, Killian! And he’s locked in a cell, what harm could he do by talking to her? You know how much she loves being told stories…”

“Those _stories_ are not ones that she should be hearing!”

Hook shakes his head slowly as they argue and looks down at the curve of Emma’s stomach, his fingers twitching as he reaches toward her. As his hand passes the bars he catches himself and pulls back, glancing up to her face again before he turns away to sit back down on the cot.

“You shouldn’t even be here, God knows what kind of trouble you two being in the same _town_ can cause let alone the same room!”

“Me?!” Killian balks. “You’re the one that shouldn’t be here! That man in that cell—” he points to Hook. “—you don’t know him.”

A sneer curls up on his lips before he throws a glare toward his future self. Obviously he’s well aware of what kind of man he is, he doesn’t need a reminder. Pulling the flask from the back of his pocket, he pulls the quark out with his teeth and spits it to the ground before taking a large drink. This has to be some sort of dream… or he’s gone mad.

This life… this family… it just wasn’t in the cards for him, he doesn’t deserve it.

“Okay, enough!” Emma growls and he looks up just in time to see her turn to him. “Excuse us for a second.”

He watches as she tries to pull Killian away but he refuses to move.

“I’m not letting him out of my sight!”

Clenching his jaw, Hook sighs and shakes his head. Where his counterpart thinks he’ll go while being locked behind these bars, he has no idea.

Emma growls something at him before taking his hand in hers and tugging him toward the room in the corner. Hook watches them through the glass of the room, almost wanting to turn and not watch her hands on him, but unable to tear himself away. She wasn’t lying. She married that man. She married _him_. Emma Swan, the beautiful fiery goddess that only chose to touch him to shackle his wrist or save his life, was now standing between his future self’s legs, pregnant with their child.

He must be dying, it’s the only explanation for this madness. When he sees Killian wrap his arms around her and bury his face in her neck, he finally turns away, ignoring the itch he feels in his own arms. The only time he was able to _hold_ her, if one would even call it that, was when she saved him from the trip wire.

He takes another pull from the flask and tries to clear his head. No matter what is happening, he’s still locked in this cell and he has to find a way to get out. He sits on the cot, and slips his fingers under the mattress. The springs aren’t that tight, a couple pulls with his hook should do the trick, then all he’ll have to do is twist it to his favor.

The door to the office opens and he puts his hand back in his lap. Killian still looks at him with a furrowed brow, but Emma seems a little more calm.

“I’m assuming you’ll be okay by yourself for a half an hour or so…” she starts as she walks over to retrieve her coat. “We’re going for a drive.”

Hook shoots up from the cot and takes the few short steps to the bars, “You can’t just leave me here!”

“Aye,” Killian growls. “We can and we will. Sit tight.”

He clenches his jaw and glares at his future self while Emma gives him a soft smile. They walk out and he waits until he hears the door close in the hall before turning back to the cot and ripping the mattress off.

There are many things that are running through his head, disbelief, confusion, anger… This future is a lie, it has to be. The Dark One must be playing some sort of trick on him, or he hit his head falling through that portal and he’s dreaming of a life he could never have.

_“Dad…”_

Such a strapping young lad, easy to tell how protective he is over his family and how much he loves them. No doubt a son that he would be proud to call his own.

_“You’re Captain Hook!”_

He falters in his tug against the spring. That beautiful child, that _angel_ was his… his and Emma’s.

_“My daddy is the best daddy in the whole world.”_

Slamming his hook down on the metal, he tries to drown on her voice out of his head. A few fleeting moments with that perfect little lass and he’s ready to forget everything. But he’ll probably never see her again, his future self with make sure of that.

The spring breaks with ease and it doesn’t take him long to untangle it and pick the lock on the cell. Rushing out, he pauses at the desk Emma sat at, something stopping him. He leans over and picks up the turned down frame.

His breath catches when he sees the portrait it holds. Henry is on his older self’s back, whose arms are wrapped around Emma’s middle and they are all staring at the little babe in her arms. His hand starts to shake and the frame drops to the ground.

Shaking his head, he concentrates on the one thing he knows is true… and that’s his revenge. So he forgets about the fallen portrait and rushes out of the station.

Looking up and down the street, he takes notice that it’s mostly deserted, but he still keeps to the shadows. He doesn’t need someone spotting him. He’s just about to take a corner when a woman walks out of a store and almost runs into him.

“Oh! Killian, I’m sorry, I didn’t see you there.”

Hook almost balks at the use of his name, but quickly shakes his head when he remembers.

“Apologies…” he trails off as he looks her over, the dark hair is familiar, but it’s not until he sees her pale blue eyes that he realizes just who she is.

She’s the Crocodile’s love.

“You,” he breathes out.

“I thought you would be still on your outing?” She chuckles and adjusts the books she carries to her chest. “Is David still insisting he knows what he’s doing?”

He continues to stare at the woman with his mouth parted. The last he saw of her, he was trying to take her from the Evil Queen’s castle, but now she is standing before him, chatting him as if they were old friends.

“Are you alright?” she asks when he doesn’t answer.

Shaking his head slightly, he nods, “Aye. Forgive me, it seems I may have fallen ill.”

“Oh, Killian,” she adjusts the books again and reaches out to place her hand on his arm. It feels foreign, and he’s just about to pull back when her fingers give him a tight squeeze. “Perhaps you should head back to the house… I can stop by Granny’s and bring you a bowl of her soup. Will Jr. was asking for Lily just yesterday—” his eyes snap up at the mention of the little angel’s name. “—we could come by, is there anything else that you may need?”

Again, he’s hit with a tidal wave of emotions and takes a step back. The last person that took care of him when he was ill had been Milah…

“Killian?” He shakes his head and blinks down at her. “Should I call Emma?”

Pressing his lips together, he forces a smile, “No, lass. I’ll be alright. Just out for a stroll to clear my head. Perhaps I’ll take my old girl out for a sail.”

Her brow goes together and she tilts her head, “What?”

He opens his mouth to answer her but stops when a sign across the way catches his eye.

_‘Mr. Gold Pawnbroker & Antiquities Dealer’_

Gold… that’s what Emma called the Dark One.

With his jaw clenching and his eyes locked on the sign, he says, “I best get going.”

She says something but he doesn’t hear her, his anger and need for vengeance blocking everything out. He looks through the windows, but the inside appears to be empty. There is a sign hanging on the front door that reads closed, but that’s never stopped him before. Looking around, he pulls the coil he used on the cell out of his pocket and places his hook on the knob. With his eyes still checking his surroundings, he smirks when he feels the lock click into place.

Opening the door to the shop, he steps in with his body on high alert. It’s quiet, but he knows the Crocodile loves his tricks. For all Hook knows, he’s watching him as he moves.

There is a cutlass on one of the counters and he picks it up, but as soon as he fingers wrap around the handle, he freezes. The voice in the back of his head starts up again and an image of dark hair and green eyes flashes in his mind. His vengeance is so close, he can feel it, but he can’t seem to make himself move.

Growling in frustration he knocks over a box on the counter and slams his fist down.

If he’s being honest with himself, he doesn’t know why he’s in the shop. Emma told him that Gold was no longer in Storybrooke… but she also told him she didn’t know where _he_ was and she was lying.

Letting go of the cutlass, he walks to a room in the back and starts to look around. There has to be something there that will give him some sort of hint as to where the Dark One is located. He’s not sure how long he’s there searching when he hears the door in the front of the shop open.

His eyes move frantically as he searches for something to defend himself. Spying a large object on a table, he yanks it up before sliding up against the wall. He holds the object up as he turns, ready to strike when he sees Emma standing there, an annoyed look on her face.

“ _Really_?!” she growls. “You broke out?”

Rolling his eyes, he replies, “Pirate!” He tosses the object onto a nearby table and turns back to her. “How did you find me?”

“Please,” she huffs. “I know you better than you know yourself.”

“So you say, _love_.” He takes a step forward, raising his hand to point at her face. “But how am I supposed to believe a bloody word you say when you keep lying to me?!”

He watches as a flash of what looks like hurt crosses her face before she masks it and squares her shoulders.

“What the hell was I supposed to say to you?”

He throws his hand up with a cold laugh. “Oh, I don’t know, perhaps the truth?! It’s clear you come up with some way to deal with my recollections otherwise my future self wouldn’t have been…” he pauses, waving in her direction with a hint of a sneer, “coddled up to you in that office.”

His jaw clenches as he remembers watching them… the way she touched him… how his future self held her…

“If I didn’t know any better I’d say you were jealous,” she says with a slight smirk.

His eyes go wide.

“I’m not bloody…” he mutters, trailing off and flashing her a look before he turns on his heel, glancing back to speak over his shoulder. “And what of the bloody Crocodile, anyway? ‘ _He’s not here’_ ,” he imitates her voice, “I know. So where the hell is he?”

She sighs and gives a little shrug, “He did something that was unforgivable and was banished from Storybrooke years ago… sent out into the world without magic. No one has seen or heard from him since.”

He turns properly to watch her lips as she speaks, his ears picking up at the mention of the land without magic. Lips creeping up into a smirk, he meets her eyes. “I don’t suppose I’d be lucky enough for you to just tell me how I would get there?”

“Right,” she says with a chuckle. “I’ll just give you a map.” His eyebrow ticks up and her lips form into a thin line. “The only thing you should be worried about right now is getting back to your time. Which is why I came back to get you at the station. Much to my husband’s displeasure,” she mumbles the last part under her breath and brushes her hair away from her face.

“Aye, back to your bloody cage?” he spits while pointing at the door. “What’s stopping me leaving now? I’ve found the Dark One before, I’d find a way.”

She takes a step forward with a sigh, “Hook, we just have to find a way to get you back. If you could just give me a little bit of time—”

“You don’t think I’ve waited long enough?!” he snaps. “Ten bloody hours on that beanstalk waiting to die!”

“You weren’t going to die!” she cries. “I made a deal with Anton, he wasn’t going to touch you.”

“ _I_ didn’t know that,” he says, stepping toward her and pumping his finger to the ground. “I was chained there thinking that damn giant was toying with me.” His voice falters, fist clenching. “You _abandoned_ me.”

She sucks in a breath and takes a step back. The look on her face making him wince when he sees her eyes shine with unshed tears.

“I know,” she whispers. “I should have trusted you… I know that now.” She looks down for a quick second before moving her gaze back up to him. “But if I could go back, knowing what I know now… I’d do it again, because it’s brought us here—” she touches her round stomach. “—and I wouldn’t give that up for anything.”

He glances down at her middle before his gaze moves to the ground again.

“It still hurt,” he mutters. “I’ve been alone for so long, when you… I thought…” He trails off, shaking his head, a deep sigh ending his confession. “Take me back to the cell.”

Every muscle in his body fights against him when she reaches up to wipe away her stray tear, but he doesn’t move. They both just stand there in silence before she sniffles softly.

“Look,” she starts low. “You don’t have to go back to the cell, there’s really no point in it anymore. You could come back to the house…” she shrugs with a small smile. “Get to know your kids.”

He meets her eyes, looking between them with a frown. “He won’t like it.”

She tilts her head, “Are you going to hurt them?”

“Never,” he says quietly, holding her gaze. “I would _never_.”

He has to hold back his surprise when she smiles and mumbles, “I know. So why don’t you let me worry about my husband, okay?”

One of his cheeks creases in a half smirk, lips parting as he gazes at her. “Me,” he says softly, shaking his head in disbelief. “You married _me_.”

She rolls her eyes but he can see the happiness on her face, something, if he’s honest, he’d never thought he’d see from her.

Taking another step forward, he tilts his head to look into her eyes. “Forgive me for raising my voice to you, Emma.”

“It’s okay,” she tells him, her eyes sparkling amusement as she pokes her tongue out to moisten her lips. “I can handle it.”

His brow goes together and he frowns despite her smile. “It’s not… okay. I don’t want that for you.”

“Hey,” she takes a step forward and puts her hand on his arm, making him stand up a little straighter under her touch. “It was a joke… something that happened between us, but hasn’t happened for you yet. You are a good husband,” she gives him a slight nod with a smile. “You make me _very_ happy.”

Pressing his lips together, he gives her a slight nod and tries to ignore the fluttering in his stomach. He follows her out of the shop and his eyebrow arches as she walks to a yellow contraption on the street.

“This is quite the vessel you captain, Swan.” She stops and stares at him, blinking twice before tilting her head. “What?”

She snaps out of her stupor and shakes her head, “Nothing. Um, let’s go.”

She giggles as he looks around the metal carriage in confusion, and normally, it would infuriate him, but the way her cheeks crease and her eyes sparkle when she laughs makes him forget everything. They don’t speak as they move toward their destination and he’s a little grateful for it.

A lot has been thrown at him the last couple hours and it’s nice to have the quiet moment for a change. He takes in the scenery as they move along. There are people walking along the streets, they seem perfectly normal… happy even. From what Cora told him of this land, the Evil Queen made sure everyone was going to be miserable, but they seem far from it. There’s a couple sitting on a bench together, their arms wrapped around each other and there is a group of children running around laughing.

The sound of Lily’s giggle echoes in his brain and he feels the corners of his lips tug up. She’s bright and brilliant… everything he could wish for in a dau--

He shakes his head. He’s still unable to even think the word, the shock still making it unbelievable.

Emma lets out a slight gasp just as the carriage pulls to a stop. When he looks over, his brow goes together when he sees her right hand move to her stomach.

Fear starts to creep up in him and he sits up, “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she breathes out with a smile. “It’s just the baby gave a little kick to my ribs.”

His eyes widen as he feels his fingers twitch on his lap. He tries not to turn his body toward her, tries to look at anything but her stomach… but he fails.

With a deep breath, he looks up at her through his lashes, his eyes welling up, and stretches his hand out to her stomach. “May I…?”

He expects to hear her laugh, scolding him for even entertaining the idea before her flat out denial. What he doesn’t expect is to feel her fingers wrap around his wrist to bring his hand to her rounding stomach.

His entire body goes stiff and he doesn’t realize he’s holding his breath until she speaks.

“You can say something.” His brow furrows and she giggles. “The baby always kicks to your voice, it’s been a dance party in here all day.”

“Apologies, I never intended—” He chokes on his words as he feels it, swallowing roughly and moving his body closer. “Bloody hell.”

He feels movement again and whispers, “Hello, little one.”

There’s another push to his hand and his eyes go impossibly wide. He’s never felt anything so extraordinary, and knowing that the child in there is his…

“I’ll never get over that,” Emma whispers, breaking him out of his thoughts.

“What’s that, love?”

There’s another jolt to his hand as she whispers, “The way your face lights up when you feel the baby move.”

His eyes move up to hers and he has to swallow at the beautiful smile on her lips. He can’t help but stare at them and wonder what they taste like, but he doesn’t. The word _undeserving_ flashing through his mind like a raging storm.

Her lips press together in a sly smile before she says, “We should get inside.”

Clearing his throat, he nods and sits back, only moving his hand when he has to. They step out of the vessel and his mouth parts at the dwelling before them.

“Here? We… you live here?” His lips tug into a smile when the smell of the ocean fills his senses.  “Are we by the water?”

“Of course,” she answers, almost as if it’s unfathomable question. “Did you honestly think you could be that far away from it?”

Shaking his head as they walk up the steps, “Lass, up until a couple hours ago, I thought the only future I had was death.”

Her eyes soften before lips press together and she motions to the door.

“Are you ready for this?”

“No,” he breathes out honestly, making her giggle. “But I’m not one to back down from a challenge.”

“Oh, believe me, I know,” she mutters before opening the door.

When they walk inside, he’s once again hit with emotion. The house is… warm and inviting… the type of house you know just know a loving family lives in… a _home_.

“I’m home!” Emma calls out.

Hook looks up just in time to see Killian walk in from another room with a device held to his head.

“Next round at the hole is on you, mate… aye.” He pulls the device away from his ear and sticks in his back pocket.

Hook’s brow goes together as Emma rolls her eyes. “Nice, Killian. Was it necessary to call my parents?”

“Was it necessary to bring him here?”

“I’m standing right here,” Hook huffs.

Emma walks over to Killian and leans up to give him a kiss on the cheek.

“Where are the kids?”

Killian sighs and runs his hand through his hair, “Upstairs. I needed a bit of a break from all the questions about pirating,” he turns to Hook, “Thanks for that, by the way.”

“Trust me, mate, if I had known who she was, I wouldn’t have told her.”

“And if I had known you were here, I’d have gotten her before she had the chance to go there.”

They both turn to look at Emma to see her bending over to take off her boots.

“What?” she asks, her face masked with confusion. Hook arches his eyebrow at her and she chuckles before she stands up straight and motions between he and Killian. “You know you two are both looking at me the same way right now, it’s actually pretty funny.” When neither one of them find the humor in the situation, her smile fades and her hand goes to her stomach. “Guess you guys don’t think so. Lily! Captain Hook is here!”

Before he or his future self can comment, there’s a squeal and the sound of little thumps before she appears at the top of the steps and he feels his lips tug up into a smile.

“You’re here!” she cries out, rushing down with Henry following shortly after her. Hook’s eyes widen when she runs up and starts to bounce on her feet. “I told daddy you didn’t need to be in jail! Didn’t I, daddy?”

“Aye, bean,” Killian sighs. “That you did.”

“Let’s go see my room!” she says, her face filled with such excitement, he can’t help but smile more.

“Lily, don’t be so bossy,” Henry chuckles.

Her little cheeks tint pink as she squirms on her feet, “Sorry. Would you _please_ come see my room?”

His gaze moves up to Emma. She invited him there to get to know his children, but he’s sure that Killian won’t allow it. Her eyes flicker over to his future self, who huffs before walking out of the room.

“It’s up to you,” when he gives her a tentative look, she shrugs, “You can stay down here with Killian and I where we will be doing research on how to get you back, or you could go upstairs with them.”

It’s on the tip of his tongue, how well he is at research, but if he helps them, it could possibly mean that they will find a way to send him back sooner… send him back to a time where he’s alone, where no one cares for him, and where he doesn’t have a son and a daughter.

Looking back at Henry before he looks down at Lily, he smiles, “I think I’d like to see your room.”

“Come on,” Lily cries out, grabbing his and her brother’s hand to pull them up the steps with her. “Henry and I can show you the storybook and we can read about how my grandpa and grandma met, it’s my second most favorite story ever!”

“Second favorite?” He asks with his brow together. “What’s your first?”

Letting go of their hands when they reach the top of the stairs, Lily turns to look back at them with a smile, “Mommy and Daddy’s.”

* * *

Hook turns over in the bed and stares at the ceiling. The only light in the room coming from the moon outside of the window. He’s completely drained, exhaustion washing over him like a sleeping curse, and though he’s been laying there for some time, sleep is still eluding him.  

He spent a good amount of time with his children, Henry telling him of his schoolings, while Lily jumped around to show him her different dolls and the small wooden model of the Jolly Roger Smee carved for her.

When they brought out the storybook, Lily ran up to him and climbed up onto his lap. Hook sat there for long moments, his body completely stiff, with his hook held away for fear that he might hurt her. It wasn’t until Henry chuckled and shook his head, that he finally let himself relax.

Tears welled in his eyes when the little lass took his hook and wrapped her tiny fingers around it, holding on as if it was just another hand. About half way through the story, she laid her head against his chest and fell asleep and he put his nose to her hair and breathed in the most beautiful smell he’s ever had to pleasure of smelling.

Henry picked her up from his lap to lay her in bed and he had to hold back his request to hold her longer. He was hesitant to leave, but with her asleep, he knew it would be slight easier to get to know his son. They moved to his room where Henry explained to him what it meant to be the author by drawing a portrait of Hook falling through the portal that brought him to Storybrooke.

They spoke of many things and he was even able to help him with a few Latin phrases for his school work before Emma came up to tell the lad that it was time for bed.

She offered him their spare room, saying they hadn’t found anything. He caught a flash of Killian walking into a room, before she showed him to his own and ignored the tinge of jealousy when he saw her go into the same room after she left him alone.

Sighing, he throws the blanket off and moves to sit on the side of the bed. He’s learned to adapt to almost any situation, being alive for more than a hundred years will do that to a person, but nothing could have prepared him for this.

Because he doesn’t deserve _any_ of it… Emma… their children… he’s unworthy, a villain, a monster. How is possible that he’s earned the right to have such a lovely family?

With a frustrated huff, he pushes himself up and walks out of the room. His eyes move to Lily and Henry’s bedroom doors to see both are closed. Part of him wants to open them, check to make sure they are safe and sound in their beds, but he doesn’t.

It isn’t his place.

He walks down the hall, but stops outside of Emma and Killian’s bedroom. Their door isn’t closed all the way and he can hear soft breathing coming from the inside. Without thinking too much about it, he tilts his head and looks through the small opening. His lips part at the sight before him.

Emma is laying on her back, her blonde hair spread out on the pillow while Killian is lying on his side, his head tucked into her neck and his right hand resting on her stomach. His entire body itches to know what it feels like to be that close to her, to hold her against him in such a loving manner, with his own hand on her bump.

An overwhelming feeling of joy washes over him as he remembers the feel of the little babe against his hand, how it moved to the sound of his voice and he wished he could just sit there and feel it always.

Emma lets out a soft noise and snuggles closer to Killian, making Hook snap out of his thoughts.

With a shake of his head, he backs away in embarrassment and walks down the stairs, stopping every few seconds to look at the portraits that hang on the walls, pictures Henry called them. It makes his heart ache to see the ones that show Lily and Henry over the years, to see them so small… it makes him yearn to know those years.

He walks into the living and over to the fireplace, his lips going up slightly when he sees the sextant Liam gave him so long ago sitting upon the mantel, along with more pictures. There are more of the children and some with people he doesn’t recognize, and some that he does. He snorts when he sees a picture of the Evil Queen and Snow White, still unable to grasp the concept of their friendship.

Turning to move, he stops when one particular picture catches his eye. He doesn’t even realize that he’s reaching for it until it’s in his hand. It’s a picture of himself and Emma, he’s wearing some sort of formal attire while she has a white gown on. He swallows the lump in his throat when he puts the pieces together.

It’s from their wedding.

Emma is looking straight ahead, her mouth open in laughter while her eyes shine bright, she looks absolutely stunning, but no, that still isn’t what made him stop. It’s himself… he isn’t looking forward, but down at Emma in complete awe. There is a slight smile on his lips and his face is filled with such _love_ , such devotion he didn’t even know he was capable of.

Is this how he looked at Milah? How could he love someone again after she was taken away from him?

Rubbing his thumb over her face, his jaw clenches. What if something happens to her… or their children? He barely knows them and the thought of anyone harming one hair on their heads almost cripples him.

They must be protected.

Placing the frame back in its place he walks to the front door. The house is quiet, almost too quiet, it makes the hair on the back of his neck stand up. How do they sleep so soundly in such an open space? Anyone could enter, could attack at any moment.

His body is on high alert as he steps out of the house and walks around the porch, checking the dark areas and shadows for any dangers. When he gets back to the front, he pulls the dagger out of his boot and sits down on the top of the stairs.

The Dark One may be gone, but if he’s learned anything in all his years, it’s to never underestimate him. He could show up at any moment, and though Hook may not be able to do much with magic being here, but he could at least hold him off until Killian awakes to get them to safety.

After a while, the door opens behind him. Whipping around, his brow furrows when he sees Killian walking out.

With a slight huff, he turns back to the night and cracks his neck, “Checking to see if I’d gone?”

“No,” Killian replies.

Hook snorts. “Oh, come to berate me then, did you?”

“Well deserved as it may be, I’m not out here to chastise you.” From the corner of his eye, he sees Killian approach and hold a flask out to him. “Rum?”

He takes the flask and Killian leans back against a pillar, crossing his arms over his chest. Hook looks him up and down and his face scrunches up.

“What the bloody hell are you wearing?”

“It’s the sleepwear of this realm, it’s actually quite comfortable.”

His eyebrow raises as looks at the cotton pants and the thin undershirt, it doesn’t look to be very warm, but then again, he’s use to the cold weather.

“I did this as well,” Killian starts softly while Hook takes his first pull from the flask. “Every night for months after the Dark One was banished from this town.”

“Aye,” Hook answers, eyeing the flask in his hand. “Well… they are worth protecting.”

Killian looks down at his feet and smiles. “That they are.”

They are both silent for a long while, just staring into the night.

“What did he do?” Hook asks and Killian gives him a side look in question. “The Crocodile… which of his many sins was he banished for?”

He sighs and looks back down at his feet before he reaches out for the flask. Handing it to him, Hook presses more, “Was it Emma? Was she the one finally able to overpower him?”

“No,” Killian answers after he swallows down the rum. “It was Belle.”

“Belle?”

“Remember the lass in the castle… the Dark One’s love?”

Hook’s lips part, “You mean the one that is in town?” When Killian lifts his eyebrow, he nods. “Aye, ran into her earlier, she thought I was you.”

Killian’s jaw clenches before he growls, “You didn’t hurt her, did you?”

“Bit tetchy, aren’t we?” Hook asks with his eyebrow up.

They eye each other for a few seconds before Killian shakes his head and takes another pull from his flask.

“She eventually saw through his lies then,” Hook says with a nod. “Good for her. So what was it?”

He watches as Killian pushes himself off the pillar and moves to sit next to him.

“Emma was…” he trails off and shakes his head. “Something happened and to save the town she took on the darkness, became the next Dark One.” Hook’s mouth falls open and Killian scratches his scruff. “Things happened… we found a way to put the darkness into someone without killing them. The Crocodile offered to take it back, said it was his burden to bear,” he spits.

“What was the real reason?” Hook asks in disgust.

Killian sneers. “Found a way to release himself from the damned dagger, and one of the ingredients of his wretched spell was the heart of someone who knew him before he became the Dark One,” he gives a bitter laugh, putting on a voice to quote him. “ _’You're my oldest friend, dearie!’_ ”

They both put on the exact same expression, like they're trying not to vomit, and look at each other with quiet understanding.

“Belle worked it out before he managed to perform the spell. Saved my life and sent the bloody Crocodile packing,” he nods off to one side. "Forced him out of the town with his own shiny tether."

Hook nods solemnly. “Hell of a woman.”

“Aye, she's a marvel.”

“And she did all of that… because of what he did to you… to us?” Hook asks, uncertainty in his voice.

Killian smiles as he reaches over for the flask, “As I said, she’s a marvel… and a great friend.”

Shaking his head, he hands Killian the rum when he sees something familiar.

“You still wear them?” When he looks at him in question, Hook nods toward his hand. “The rings.”

Killian’s gaze moves down toward his hand as his thumb fumbles with the rings. “Aye, they are reminders.”

“Of what you’ve done?”

“That all sins can be forgiven...” he whispers, a small smile on lips. “when someone loves you.”

“And she does? Emma?”

“Aye,” Killian whispers. “She does, for reasons I’m still not quite sure of… and she’s everything to me.”

A lump forms in his throat at the sound of Killian’s voice. It’s so soft, but strong, and filled with such devotion, not with hate and anger like his own voice has when speaking of love.

He loved Liam, he loved Milah and the reward for his love was having them taken from him. He spent years avenging Liam’s death by pirating and centuries attempting to avenge Milah’s by destroying the Dark One.

Now, years later, he’s a changed man, married to a gorgeous woman, with two beautiful children and another on the way. Even his wildest dreams he couldn’t picture it being this… not after Milah...

“Do you still miss her?” Hook asks in a whisper, staring out into the night.

“No,” his head whips over to Killian and his eyes widen. It’s like he doesn’t even recognize the man sitting next to him. His breathing starts to pick up and an overwhelming feeling of hurt washes over him. This future is everything he could have ever dreamed of, but to forget about his love for Milah… he shakes his head as Killian continues, “But I still think of her… every day. Perhaps I always will.”

Hook looks forward again, but doesn’t say anything. They both sit there for a little while long, sharing the flask, but not speaking, before Killian finally stands.

“You know there is no reason to keep watch,” he motions out to the darkness. “Regina put a barrier spell around the house and Emma placed a protection spell on the front door ages ago. No one that wishes harm upon anyone in this house can even pass the gate.”

“Aye, but you and I both know one can never rely solely on magic.”

He hears Killian sigh before he says, “If you’re going to sit up all night, at least do it out of the cold.” Hook turns to look back at him and he shrugs, “You don’t want to leave here ill.”

Raising his eyebrow, he stands with a smirk, “You more concerned for my health or your own?”

“My own,” Killian snorts as he opens the door. “My wife will kill me if anything happens to you.”

* * *

“It’s time to wake up!”

Hook’s eyes snap open and his head whips over to see Lily standing before him, dark hair slightly frizzy, dressed in sleepwear that has little anchors etched into it. Her eyes are wide and bright and there is a large smile on her face.

She giggles when he shakes his head and looks to the window to check the time of day. He stayed by the large window in the living room until the first rays of sun shone through the sky. Only then did he finally retreat to the room they opened to him to try and steal a little time for sleep, trusting that his future self to take watch soon.   

“It’s already way past sunrise,” she says. “Everyone will be here soon!”

Rubbing his eyes slightly, he leans forward on his elbow and tilts his head, “Who, lass?”

“Grandma, grandpa—” she holds up her hand and starts to count with it as she speaks. “—Uncle Leo… they are all coming over for daddy’s birthday breakfast, and that means it’s your birthday, too! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!”

He blinks, her shrill voice piercing his sleep-fogged mind, and opens his mouth to speak. It’s been longer than he can remember since he's heard well-wishing for the day of his birth. He'd barely cared to remember the day himself. His mouth shuts again without any words escaping, and he diverts his thought to scratching below his ear, smiling up at the girl a little weakly. "Thank you, love," he answers softly.

Lily giggles again and reaches forward to grab his hand and pulls, “Let’s goooo!”

She barely gives him time to put on his boots before she’s pulling him up and out of the room.

“Oh!” she gasps, stopping them in the middle of the hall. “I have to wake Henry, I’ll meet you downstairs!”  

He holds his hand up to stop her, but she’s gone before he can speak. Shaking his head, he walks down the hall and tries to wake himself up. He’s use to not getting much sleep, being the Captain of a ship will do that to you, but he hadn’t realized exactly how tired he was. But it also just accrues to him how well he’s slept, even if it wasn’t for too long.

From long ago, back when he and Liam were slaves, he trained himself to wake at the slightest sound, but Lily was able to get in the room without so much as making him stir. He tries to figure how that is possible but just comes up blank. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, he decides to not dwell, of all the things that are happening to him, his sleeping habits are the least of his worries.

Hook walks toward the kitchen to find Emma and Killian wrapped in each other’s arms, kissing passionately.

“Oh,” he lets out his surprise before he can stop himself, staring down at his feet in embarrassment and turning away with a thought to leave and hope they didn’t notice him walk in on a private moment. As he takes the first step, he can’t help but glance up at the pair entwined, for morbid curiosity if nothing else.

They continue to kiss before they break apart and place their foreheads together. Turning again to leave, his eyes close when he hears Emma call out, “Hook!”

A puff of air passes his lips and he shakes his head slightly before he turns back to them.

“We didn’t think you would be up so early,” her voice is breathless and her lips are slightly swollen.

“I...” he watches as Killian stares at Emma for a second longer, a small smile on his face before giving him a side look. Hook reaches up to scratch the back of his ear and looks away. “Don’t let me interrupt.”

Killian pulls away from her slowly and turns to him fully, “Join us.”

His eyebrow ticks up and Killian chuckles before he moves to the other side of the room.

“Did Lily wake you? She was rather insistent you should be awake.” Emma asks with a smile as she walks up, a mug in her hand. When she holds it out to him, he tilts his head in question. “It’s coffee. Happy birthday, Hook.”

“Thank you, Emma,” he mumbles while taking the mug from her.

Her lips tug up, “I hear you had a late night.”

Rolling his eyes, he speaks to his future self, “Really, mate?”

“Don’t blame me, she was awake when I returned to bed.”

Emma smirks, “That’s what happens when you have a child that likes to sit on your bladder.”

She turns to walk back toward the table and he raises his mug to his mouth as he eyes her. She has wool socks on her feet, but her legs are bare, the trousers only stopping mid-thigh, and the black shirt she’s wearing hangs loosely off her body, her round stomach popping under the strain of the undergarment she wears.

_Beautiful…_

A throat being cleared makes him look up and his ears warm when he sees Killian staring at him with his eyebrow raised. But instead of showing his embarrassment, he simply shrugs and raises his brows as if to say _can you blame me_.

Killian just chuckles and shakes his head.

“Okay,” Emma says as she places another plate on the table. “Mom and dad should be here any minute. They already know what’s going on, thank you, Killian, and have explained it to Leo.” She turns to him. “Leo is my little brother. He’s a bit older than Lily, so he understands somewhat. Now, he’s called Killian ‘Hook’ since he’s been a baby because it was easier, so it might get a little confusing there, but I think we can get through it, yeah?” She looks back and forth between them with a large smile. When neither of them say anything, her face drops. “You two are doing that thing again where you’re both giving me the same look.”

Hook snorts while Killian moves and presses his lips to her temple, “We’ll be alright, love.”

She smiles and opens her mouth to speak when Lily and Henry come into the kitchen.

“He’s here!”

“Lily,” Emma sighs. “Did you wake your brother up, too?”

Henry groans and stumbles into the kitchen, his eyes still half closed and hair a mess. She pouts her lips at her son and pats his back as he walks over to Killian.

“Happy birthday, dad.”

Killian wraps his arm around him and pulls him close. Hook watches has Henry rests his head on his father’s shoulder and he can’t help but smile.

“Thank you, lad. Sorry about your sister, we tried to hold her off as long as possible.”

Henry shrugs before he lifts his head, “Happy birthday, Hook.”

Sitting down at the table, he nods at the boy, still trying to wrap his head around the fact that the day of his birth warrants such acknowledgment.

“When are grandpa and grandma going to get here?” Lily asks bouncing on her feet.

“Soon, bean,” Killian tells her. “Did you wash up?”

Hook sits there quietly as the little family moves around the kitchen. He watches how they interact with each other and how they are all so in sync. His future self and Emma work well together, and it also doesn’t go unnoticed to him how whenever they pass each other, Killian will brush his fingers over her stomach. The same stomach he had his own hand upon just the day before… he smiles at the memory of the little one moving, a blessing to feel such a thing, to the sound of his voice.

It doesn’t surprise him, because given the chance, he would do the same.

“Hello?” A voice calls out from the front door and Lily jumps down from her seat with a big smile.

“They’re here!” she runs out of the room and he hears her yell, “Grandpa!”

There are voices as Emma walks out and he looks over at Killian with his eyebrow raised.

“Ready to meet your in-laws?” he asks with a smirk and Hook’s mouth drops.

“Hook!”

His head whips around to see a young lad running into the kitchen toward Killian.

“Ah, there he is!” he bends over to pick the boy up into his arms. “How’s the little Prince today?”

The boy giggles and pulls him in for a hug, “Happy birthday!”

“Thank you, my boy,” Killian says with a smile as he pats him on the back.

“Oh!” Hook looks back toward the entrance to see Emma walk in with Snow and who he assumes is Prince Charming, with Lily in his arms. “Wow, talk about a blast from the past. Hello, Hook.”

He remembers seeing her just the day before, hatred and anger clear in her eyes, but now there is anything but.

Pressing his lips together in a small grin, he gives her a slight nod and stands, “Milady.”

She turns to Killian and the smile on her face widens as she walks over to him, “Killian,” she places a soft kiss to his cheek. “How are you?”

He doesn’t hear his response because Lily calls out to him, “This is my grandpa. Grandpa, this is Captain Hook.”

Charming steps forward, a look of uncertainty on his face.

“Uh huh,” he mumbles as he eyes him.

Hook’s shoulders square and he feels his body become defensive.

“Dad,” Emma sighs.

But it’s not until Charming looks over at Killian, who gives him a nod, that he finally steps forward and holds out his hand, “David.”

Accepting his hand, Hook nods, “Good to meet you.”

Lily giggles and he lets out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding.

“Okay, who’s hungry?” Emma asks with a big smile.

* * *

The entire breakfast, boiled mackerel for his, well _Killian’s_ birthday, much like his entire time in Storybrooke, is life altering. Killian and David seem to be mates, jesting with each other over things he knows nothing about, while Emma and Snow talk about her pregnancy. Henry chimes in every so often, but mostly occupies the little ones, who seem keen on asking him more questions about being a pirate.

Keeping it simple, he tells them stories about mermaids and things like grog. When he’s finished, they always turn to Killian who nods with a smile.

“Aye, he’s speaking the truth.”

“Daddy,” she turns to look at her father from her place in his lap. “You didn’t tell me you knew mermaids.”

“Well, bean, you ask for stories every night, I have plenty to tell.”

“Because you’re so old?” Leo asks, his mouth stuffed with food.

“Oi!” Killian calls out, making everyone laugh.

Hook shakes his head and leans toward the two little ones.

“How about I tell you the time I sailed the Jolly Roger through a lightning storm with only a crew of five men?”

The clattering sound of Emma’s fork hitting her plate makes everyone stop and look up at her.

“Love?” Killian asks, his voice filled with worry. “What is it?”

Her mouth opens and closes a few times before she looks over to Hook.

“I know how you got here,” she whispers.

“What?” David asks in shock before Snow says, “How?”

Emma quickly stands and throws her napkin down on the table while Killian hands Lily off to Henry.

“Swan, what’s going on?” When she doesn’t answer, he catches her by the arm. “Emma, how do you know how he got here?”

Her hands ring together and she bites her lip, “I did it.” She turns to Hook with a grimace. “I brought you here.”

Hook sits back in his chair, his eyebrow up, but Killian is the one that speaks, “What? _How_?”

The grimace on her face deepens and she opens and closes her mouth a few times before she finally mumbles, “Magic.”

Killian’s back goes stiff and he stands up straight. His jaw clenches and he crack his neck before he calls over his shoulder, “Henry, why don’t you go show Lily and Leo your new video game.”

“Can Captain Hook come, too?” Lily asks.

“Not right now, bean,” Killian says with a forced smile.

She lets out a huff and Hook gives her a small smile in reassurance before she walks out with her brother and the little lad.

When they are gone, Killian turns back to Emma with a deep frown. "You know your magic is wildly unpredictable this time around," he says, upturning his palm toward her stomach, his voice low with concern. "You could have been hurt, Emma. What could be worth that risk?"

“I know,” she sighs, putting her head in her hands for a few moments. “But it was just a small thing…”

“Small?” he chokes out and motions to Hook. “You opened a portal to the _past_.”

“That was by accident!”

“Emma,” her mother breathes. “I thought you said you knew what you were doing.”

“You knew?” David asks his wife, making Emma roll her eyes. “And you didn’t tell me?”

Snow snorts and sits back in her chair, “I did… sort of.”

“You asked me to take him out so Emma could get his birthday present!”

“Really, Dave?” Killian growls. “ _That_ was what that little outing was about yesterday?”

“The bow shooting was Robin’s idea,” he answers with a roll of his eyes.

“How did you do it?” Snow asks.

Emma shakes her head, “It doesn’t matter how. I just know I did it, which means I know how to send you back!”

“Wait,” Killian stops her. “I want to know what was so important that you risked harming yourself?”

She bites her lip, her eyes moving over to Hook before she looks back at her husband.

“Your birthday present.” Killian opens his mouth but she holds up her hands and cuts him off. “I did the first part by myself, but nothing happened, or… I _thought_ nothing happened. Then I went to Jefferson and he helped me. Little did I know, it worked, just not the way I wanted it.”

David sits up and asks, “What did you do?”

Running her hands through her hair, she takes a deep breath and turns to them, “I borrowed the Dark Fairies wand from Blue—” Killian makes a noise. “—to get the present. But with the wand you have to be concentrating and I wasn’t, well, I _was_ but I was also thinking about us and everything we’ve been through and I was thinking about how the night before Lily asked for me to read to her from the storybook again and we started at the beginning and well—” she motions to Hook. “—here he is.”

"Love," he sighs. "You could have been hurt. Whatever it might be... I can't..." He closes his eyes and shakes his head. "If you were harmed for my sake, I'd never forgive myself."

Her lips twitch, “You haven’t seen it yet.”

They stay silent for a few moments, just staring at each other before Hook clears his throat.

“Does that mean you can send me back?” Emma turns to him with a smile and nods. “Well, that’s… something.”

He rubs his lips and cracks his neck. He could really use some—

Hook looks up to see a flask being handed to him by Killian. Nodding in thanks he grabs it and quickly takes a pull. Of course he knew he would have to go back eventually, it’s not as if he could live in this time with an older version of himself walking around, but after seeing what his life will be like… the happiness, the _love_ … he doesn’t think he can go back to a place where he was angry and so alone.

“Where is it then?” David asks, bringing Hook out of his thoughts and back to the conversation.

Emma motions to the back door, “It’s out back.”

They all look while Killian walks to the window.

“There’s nothing out there, Swan.”

“There’s a cloaking spell over it and before you freak out, Regina did it, not me. She just made it easy for me to take down.”

Her parents stand and move to the door when she stops them.

“Hey,” she says, stopping them. “Where are you guys going?”

David looks back at her with his eyebrow raised, “We get to see what it is don’t we?”

Her mouth opens and closes a few times before she shrugs in defeat. “I guess.”

The Charming’s are out the door before she finishes and when she tries to go after them, Killian stops her.

“Mind buttoning up, love. It’s a bit chilly out.”

She presses her lips together with a nod and rushes out of the room. Hook takes another pull from his flask before he stands and hands it to Killian.

“You alright?”

He chuckles and shakes his head, “She is the most stubborn woman I have ever met.” He drinks from the flask and wipes his chin. “Remember how demanding she was on the stalk? Wouldn’t wait for the easy way, determined to rush in? That doesn’t change, no matter how many years have passed.”

Hook leans his elbow on the counter and gives a slight shrug, “From what I recall, it’s what intrigued us most about her.”

“You’re not wrong,” Killian mumbles before putting the flask to his lips again.

Moments later, Emma walks back into the kitchen with boots, long trousers, and a coat.

“Okay, let’s go.”

Hook moves to leave when he sees Killian stop her.

“This cloaking spell… does it require much?”

“No,” she insists. “Just a little flick of the wrist.”

He sighs and cups her face, “Love, you know I don’t doubt your magic. You can do anything, but with all these distractions…”

“It’s not _that_ bad,” she huffs to him before turning back to the table. “Watch.”

She waves her hand and there’s a puff of grey smoke that surrounds the table. Hook watches as the pottery transforms into roses and his brow goes together. When he turns, he sees Killian close his eyes and Emma’s face scrunch together as she fists her hand in front of her.

“Oops,” she mumbles.

Killian sighs and hangs his head before he turns and walks out the back door.

“I’m assuming the flower show wasn’t intended?” he asks her in a whisper while they walk out.

She shakes her head and mumbles, “I was trying to put the dishes away.”

His brow goes up and he looks back at the table. Walking outside, he reaches out with his hook and brushes it against her arm.

“Swan,” Her eyebrow raises in question and he hesitates. It’s not his place to say something, but the overwhelming feeling of concern is making it hard to hold his tongue. “The babe… your magic…”

Instead of the annoyed look he expects, she steps forward and puts her hand on his arm. “It’s really okay. The way Regina explained it to us when I was pregnant with Lily is that my magic projects itself out, and because it’s linked to my emotions, it could be slightly unpredictable. This time it’s a little different.” When he tilts his head in question, she continues as they walk down the steps. “When I was pregnant with Lily, my powers would overdo it, I’d try to move a dish to the sink and it would end up in the front yard. This time, I try to move them and…”

“You flood the table with roses,” he smirks.

She chuckles with a nod, “Yeah. Last week, I tried to close the blinds at my parent’s loft and ended up turning them into snowflakes. Mom wasn’t too happy about that.”

He snorts and follows until he’s standing with the rest of the group of the tiny shore. They are all looking around in confusion and Hook raises his eyebrow. The only thing he sees is a clear sight of open water that makes him itch for the Jolly. It’s been some time since he’s been able to take her out, he makes a promise then to stretch her legs as soon as sees her.

“Where is it?” Snow asks, her hand shielding her eyes from the sun.

Emma motions out to the open water, “Right there.”

Hook turns back to the water and scratches the back of his ear. He’s just about to ask her what it is she actually sees when he notices something odd. There are birds flying in the sky, but there are also ones that seem floating in the air. Their wings are not out, they look as they do when they are perched… but there is nothing there.

“The water, love?” Killian asks making Emma giggle.

“No.”

Killian tilts his head in question and Emma bites her lip before she lifts her hand toward the shore line and waves it. Hook looks on to see a shimmering veil disappear and the masts of the Jolly Roger appear. His lips tug up into a smile at the sight of her, with everything that’s been going on, seeing her makes him feel normal.

There’s a gasp and he turns to see Killian staring at the old girl with his mouth open and his eyes wide.

“Happy birthday,” Emma whispers, tears sparkling in her eyes.

From the corner of his eye, he sees Charming smile and put his arm around his wife when she reaches up to brush a tear away from her cheek. He opens his mouth to ask what’s going on, when Killian pulls Emma to him and presses his lips firmly to hers.

Hook looks away, his cheeks slightly tinting and shuffles his feet.

“I love you,” Killian mumbles when they part, wrapping his arms around her.

She smiles and presses a kiss to his nose, “I love you, too.”

After a few moments, Hook clears his throat.

“Pardon the interruption, but do you mind telling me what is going on here?”

Before anyone can answer, there’s a shriek from behind them. They turn to see Lily running toward them with Henry and Leo behind her.

“Is that the Jolly Roger?!” she cries out, her eyes wide in awe.

Killian turns to pick up his daughter and smiles wide, “Aye, there she is, bean.”

“Daddy,” she breathes out, her gaze flickering back and forth over the ship. “She’s so pretty!”

Hook continues to stare at them in question when Henry walks up and crosses his arms over his chest.

“She looks just like I remember her,” he mumbles.

“What’s all this?” he asks, motioning to others as they all walk aboard the ship. “Why the grand gesture?”

Henry smiles with his eyes still forward and says, “We haven’t seen the Jolly Roger since before Lily was born.”

“What?” He gasps. “Where the bloody hell has she been?”

“Dad gave her up… traded her so mom could come back here to save everyone.”

“I did _what_?” he says, looking at Henry’s face for any hint he’s lying. “But she…” he trails off and glances over at Emma with realization, his lips parting. “She’s… my home.”

The lad gives him a smirk and shrugs, “We’re you’re home.”

He’s suddenly hit with the memory of Killian’s words from the night before, _“She’s everything to me.”_

Henry walks forward while Hook continues to stare in awe. He watches as the two little ones run around the ship while Killian inspects her. He tries to comprehend what Henry has just told him, but it seems so…

Shaking his head, he stares at the ship before him. He’s been in love with her since the first moment he laid eyes on her on that beach so long ago. The way she floated on the waves, and how she looked in the moonlight… he knew in that moment she was something special.

_Just like you knew Emma was special._

His jaw clenches at the voice in his head and he looks down at the ground. When Liam passed, he found his solace on the Jolly, and when Milah was taken from him, the Jolly was the only thing in his life that he could count on. She was there for him after life failed him yet again…

And in this future, he’s given her up for Emma Swan.

“You okay?” He looks up to see Emma standing before him, the wind whips her hair around and she has to tuck it behind her ear to keep it from flying in her face.

“I’m…” he lets out a breath and shakes his head. “I don’t know what I am, Swan. This is a lot to take in.” Her brow goes together and he takes a deep breath. “Your lad…” he motions to Henry. “He told me what he did… what _I_ did for you.”

She rubs her arms to ward of the chill and looks to the ground.

“I didn’t ask for that… If I had known—”

“I know,” he cuts her off. “But it wouldn’t have made a difference.”

She nods and brushes her hair away from her face again, “That’s what you’ve told me.”

His cheek creases from his smirk and his gaze moves back to the ship.

“I supposed it’s about time you send be back,” he mumbles and she holds out her hand to reveal a wand. “And my memories?”

Reaching into her pocket she pulls out a small vial and he nods.

“Don’t suppose I could change your mind about that?” He looks toward the Jolly, his eyes sparkling as he watches Henry lift Lily up onto a crate at the wheel, her giggles so loud he can hear them as if he were standing right beside her. “It’s just…” he says quietly, trailing off and shaking his head as he looks down to hide the tears in his eyes. “I’ve… I’ve been alone for so long… I don’t want to forget… there are people who care for me… people I still care for…”

“You know that’s not a good idea,” she whispers.

He lets out a watery chuckle, “Time lines and all that.”

She gives him a sad smile and hands him the vial.

“When you drink this, you’ll forget everything about coming here. But you can’t drink it too soon… I’m going to reopen the portal and it will take you back. You have to drink as soon as you step through the portal, by the time you’re back, the memory potion will be in affect and it’ll be as if no time has passed at all.”

He meets her eyes, fisting the vial and asks quietly, “May I take it later? Let me have a few peaceful nights.”

Her smile is sympathetic but she shakes her head. “It’ll be simpler if you just wake up in the same place. No suspicious memory gaps… we don’t need you wondering why your memory is gone.”

He snorts and gives a nod. She’s right, if he realizes there is a gap in his memories, he won’t stop until he finds what he’s missing, and that could change the path that leads him to Emma.

“Worth a try,” he answers, looking down at his feet. “I just don’t want to feel like that again.”

She reaches out and puts her hand on his arm, “I don’t want you to feel like that again either, but if you don’t… you can change everything and _this_ … what we have now? Could never happen.”

His gaze moves from the ground to her round stomach. Her coat mostly covers it, but he knows it’s there.

“You look stunning, Swan. Pregnancy suits you.” Her cheeks go pink and she smiles as she places her hand on her stomach. Motioning toward the ship, he asks softly, “May I say goodbye to them?”

“Of course,” she answers without hesitating.

Turning toward the ship, she calls out to her family and he watches as the three of them walk over while the Charming’s and their son stay back. Snow gives him a little wave while her husband nods. He presses his lips together and raises his hand in goodbye.

“You’re leaving?” Lily asks, her voice filled with sorrow.

His throat almost closes and he sniffs as he nods, “Aye. It’s time for me to go back.”

She looks down with a frown and he wants to pull her into his arms to make the frown go away, but when Killian puts his hand on her shoulder, he knows he doesn’t have to. Henry steps forward and he smiles at the lad.

“Be careful, alright? I don’t want us missing out on all the things we’ve done in the past.”

Hook chuckles and pats him on the shoulder. “I promise.”

Killian walks up next and he raises his eyebrow when he offers his hand.

“Seems a little self-serving, but good luck… mate.”

Hook shakes his hand and gives a slight nod. “Aye, you too.”

With another nod, Killian steps back and puts his arm around Henry. Lily steps forward and she holds up what looks like one of the roses from the kitchen.

He kneels in front of her and reaches for the flower, “Is this for me?”

She nods and rubs her hands over the front of her coat. “Mommy says I couldn’t draw you a picture because you wouldn’t be able to take it with you, but I wanted to give you this.”

“What shall I do with it? Put it on my ship?”

Her face lights up and she nods, “Yes! It will look really pretty on the Jolly Roger.”

Pressing it over his heart, he gives her small smile and whispers, “I shall treasure it.”

Before he knows what’s happening, Lily moves forward and wraps her little arms around his shoulders. His eyes close and he pulls her close, breathing in the scent of her hair one last time.

“Bye, daddy,” Lily whispers in his ear and a puff of air passes his lips.

When she pulls away to run back to Killian and Henry, he has to force himself to let go and says barely above a whisper, “Bye, little love.”

He blinks to rid his eyes of the unshed tears and stands as Emma lifts the wand in the air. It glows for a half of second before a portal opens behind him. His brow goes together as he stares at it, because he knows what’s waiting for him is nothing but more pain and loneliness.

“How long?” he asks, his eyes moving back to her.

He knows it’s futile to ask, he won’t remember any of this, but he needs to know, if only for a moment.

She gives him a small smile, “Be patient.” Closing the gap between them, she leans forward and presses a kiss to the corner of his mouth. “I love you.”

His eyes shift back and forth between her own, searching the warmth in her gaze. He takes a step back toward the portal, but his eyes stay locked on hers. When she gives him a slight nod, he pulls the cork out of the vial with his teeth and spits it to the ground.

“I’ll see you soon,” she says with a smile.

The last thing he sees before his memory goes blank is himself, standing there with his family and his response to her just leaving his lips.

“Good.”


End file.
